Latest Japan Headlines

All the headlines from our Japan Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Here’s How Autonomous Car Sales Will Accelerate in Next Two Decades

Jun 9 2016 // Global sales of autonomous vehicles will reach nearly 21 million vehicles by 2035, a substantial increase from previous estimates, according to a forecast from the automobile industry information firm IHS Automotive.By...

Sompo Launches Model to Evaluate Wind Farm Risks

May 31 2016 // The Sompo group companies have launched a model for evaluating risks to onshore and offshore wind farms.The model, which provides key pricing and cat modeling data for insuring the construction and operation of wind...

Natural Disaster Losses Hit Five-Year High in April: Aon Catastrophe Report

May 5 2016 // The global economy suffered the worst April natural disaster losses for five years, according to Impact Forecasting, Aon Benfield’s catastrophe model development team.Earthquakes, convective storms and flooding...

Japanese Insurers Expected to Continue U.S. Spending Spree: Investment Bankers

May 4 2016 // Japanese insurers made more than $18 billion worth of acquisitions in the U.S. last year, and their spending spree isn’t over yet, industry dealmakers said on Tuesday.Japan has a number of large, healthy insurers...

Mitsubishi Motors Faces Uncertain Future as Fuel Test Scandal Deepens

Apr 27 2016 // For the second time in about a decade, Mitsubishi Motors Corp. faces a scandal that poses an existential threat.The Japanese automaker has improperly tested the fuel economy of its cars for the past quarter century,...

Japan Aims to Beef up Nuke Safety Check Competency After Bad Review

Apr 26 2016 // Japanese nuclear regulators said Monday they will revise laws, nearly double inspection staff and send some inspectors to the U.S. for training to address deficiencies cited by the International Atomic Energy Agency.The...

Economic Property Damages of Japan Earthquakes to Cost $2.5B-$3.5B: RMS

Apr 25 2016 // RMS, the Newark, Calif.-based catastrophe risk management firm, estimated that economic property damage for both the April 15 moment magnitude (Mw) 7.0 earthquake and April 14 Mw6.4 earthquake in Japan’s Kumamoto...

SCOR Increases P&C GWP Levels by 4.7% During April Renewals; Profits on Target

Apr 22 2016 // SCOR Global P&C increased gross written premiums by 4.7 percent at the recent April renewals, based on constant exchange rates, with total premiums rising from €420 million ($474.7 million) to €440 million ($497.3...

Japanese Earthquakes Could Cost Insurers $2.9 Billion: AIR Worldwide

Apr 21 2016 // An earthquake that struck southern Japan on April 16 will probably cost insurers as much as 320 billion yen ($2.9 billion), according to catastrophe modeler AIR Worldwide.The cost might be as low as 180 billion yen, the...

Global Financial Leaders Warn About Dangers of Negative Interest Rates

Apr 20 2016 // The chorus of global financial leaders warning about the fallout from negative interest rates is getting bigger.Nobuyuki Hirano, president of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., lambasted the Bank of Japan’s...

Death Toll Rises from Japanese Earthquakes; Supply Chain Disruptions Examined

Apr 18 2016 // The death toll from earthquakes that struck southern Japan rose to 42 and the economic impact began to reverberate Monday as companies surveyed damage and the potential effects on production from supply-chain...

Sony’s Camera Chip Factory Halts Production After Japan Temblor; AIR Comments

Apr 15 2016 // The earthquake in southern Japan that killed nine people, damaged buildings and derailed a bullet train also halted production at a Sony Corp. camera-chip factory, a key part of the global smartphone supply chain.The plant...

Sompo Japan in Talks to Sell Insurance in Malaysia via CIMB Branches: Sources

Apr 13 2016 // Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Holdings Inc. is nearing an agreement with CIMB Group Holdings Bhd. to distribute general insurance products through the Malaysian lender’s branches across Asia, people with knowledge of the...

Japan Opens Door to ‘Fintech’ Revolution with Plans to Ease Investment Rules

Mar 29 2016 // A laggard in embracing the ‘fintech’, or financial technology, revolution, Japan is set to ease investment restrictions that could free up the flow of capital in an economy sitting on an estimated $9 trillion...

P&I Clubs Plug Shortfall in Iran Oil Cover; US Reinsurers Still Barred by Sanctions

Mar 23 2016 // Ship insurers have stepped in to help plug a shortfall in cover for transporting Iranian oil resulting from the fact that U.S. reinsurers are still restrained by Washington’s sanctions, according to officials...

5 Governments Write to China, Expressing Concern over New & Draft Laws

Mar 1 2016 // The United States, Canada, Germany, Japan and the European Union have written to China to express concern over three new or planned laws, including one on counterterrorism, in a rare joint bid to pressure Beijing into...

World’s Top 10 Insurers Ranked by Premium, Assets

Jan 4 2016 // The world’s largest insurer as measured by 2014 net premiums written is UnitedHealth Group Inc., according to a ranking by A.M. Best of the world’s largest insurance companies.France’s AXA S.A. kept its...

Europe’s Banks Increased Infrastructure Investments Erodes Insurers’ Returns

Dec 22 2015 // The return of banks into the European infrastructure market is denting insurers’ ability to enhance their investment returns by funding the roads, bridges and wind farms of tomorrow.European politicians have...

Milliman Report on Europe, Japan, Asia Insurers Sees Increased Embedded Value

Dec 21 2015 // Global consulting and actuarial firm Milliman, Inc. has announced the availability of two new reports detailing embedded value (EV) results for 32 major insurance companies in Europe and Japan and 14 major insurance...

Sompo Japan Canopius Re Gets ‘A’ Rating; to Begin Writing Business on Jan. 1

Nov 30 2015 // A.M. Best has assigned a financial strength rating of A (Excellent) and an issuer credit rating of “a+” to Sompo Japan Canopius Reinsurance AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canopius Group AG. The outlook...