Latest Market Headlines

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

Marsh Says It Only Sees ‘Targeted Correction’ of Rates

May 3 2012 // Marsh executives said this week that they are only seeing a “targeted correction” — not a broad-based hard market — in the property/casualty insurance market.CEO Brian Duperreault said during an...

Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation Expanding into Texas, SE

May 2 2012 // Another job was the last thing Bill Henry wanted when he was approached to head up a new division of the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF). But Henry, chairman and CEO of the Dallas-based brokerage McQueary...

Geneva Association Reminds Federal Reserve Insurers Aren’t Banks

May 2 2012 // The Swiss-based insurance think tank Geneva Association has followed up on its recent report as to whether or not some insurers should be considered as G-SIFI’s (globally systemic important financial...

Montana GOP Candidates Embrace Insurance Industry Bills

Apr 23 2012 // Republican candidates for governor said on April 19 at a forum that they would back key insurance industry legislation if elected, and largely held similar positions with each other on a variety of issues.Most of the GOP...

Current Market Not Yet a ‘Classic’ Hard Market: P/C Executives

Apr 23 2012 // The current property/casualty market is not a “classic” hard market, yet anyway.While prices are clearly rising in certain lines including property and workers’ compensation, other conditions of a...

Willis Global Energy Market Review Highlights 2011 Losses, Fracking Concerns

Apr 20 2012 // Willis Energy, a unit of Willis Group Holdings, released its “Energy Market Review” at conference held at its London headquarters last Tuesday. The review focused on industry losses, current capacity and the...

Catlin Receives Approval to Establish Representative Office in Beijing

Apr 19 2012 // The Catlin Group Limited announced that it has been granted approval by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission [CIRC] to open and operate a wholly owned representative office in Beijing. The office will be headed by...

Best’s Special Vietnam Report Sees Continued Strong Growth

Apr 19 2012 // Vietnam’s insurance market has experienced strong double-digit premium growth in recent years and demand for insurance product is forecasted to continue, according to a recently released special report from A.M. Best...

Midwest Insurance Employment: Sales Agents, Good Talent Always Priorities

Apr 19 2012 // As in every other business sector, during the past few years organizations within the property/casualty insurance industry have sought to maximize efficiencies and take full advantage of the talent in their existing...

Willis Marine Market Review Forecasts ‘Another Difficult Year’

Apr 18 2012 // After an inauspicious start, 2012 could well be “another difficult and uncertain year for the maritime industry faced with the aftermath of the Costa Concordia, further problems in the euro zone, pirate attacks and...

Southeast Insurance Employment: Agency, Carrier Plans Brighten Picture

Apr 18 2012 // Those interested in new or better positions in insurance might want to grab their suntan lotion and head to the Southeast. They might also want to brush up on their Spanish.The unemployment rate remains higher in key...

Private U.S. P/C Insurers’ Income Fell to $19.1B in 2011: ISO, PCI

Apr 17 2012 // A new analysis shows that while the private U.S. property/casualty insurers suffered deteriorating results in 2011, they still ended the year with a strong and improved fourth-quarter.Private U.S. P/C insurers’ net...

West Insurance Employment: California Job Market to Stay Soft

Apr 17 2012 // The phrase “Go west young man,” may not apply so well to the insurance industry in the nation’s most populous state.An examination of Bureau of Labor Statistics and Economic Development Department data...

Corporate Insurance Buyers Preparing for Hardening P/C Market: Survey

Apr 17 2012 // A vast majority of corporate risk managers at U.S. companies are taking steps to prepare for a hardening property/casualty (P/C) insurance market.Professional services company Towers Watson’s annual survey also found...

Vermont Licensed 8 New Captives in 2012 Q1; Strongest Start Since 2005

Apr 16 2012 // Vermont officials said its captive insurance industry is off to a strong start in 2012, with the state having licensed eight new captives during the first quarter.“We had a great first quarter with the licensing of...

East Insurance Employment: Hiring Is ‘Slightly Elevated’ in 2012

Apr 16 2012 // The insurance employment market in the East and Northeast regions — as in most other parts of the country — can be summed up the following way: hiring is “slightly elevated” compared to last year, but there...

Insurance Premiums Climb to a Record $30B in Missouri in 2011

Apr 16 2012 // Missouri experienced a number of insurance industry “firsts” in 2011, including a record number of premium sales dollars, the largest-ever amount in claims paid for a single event in the state, and an...

Young Agents Survey

Apr 16 2012 // There’s a change happening in the insurance industry — a big change. Young independent insurance agents are leading a revolution.It’s a revolution of means more than ends. Young agents tend to agree with...

160-Year Old Hanover Insurance Group Retaking Its Place as P/C Industry Leader

Apr 16 2012 // (A full version of this article, as well as exclusive podcasts featuring Hanover CEO Frederick Eppinger, is available on InsuranceJournal.com)Eight out of 160 years of history may not seem like a big deal but for Hanover...

160-Year Old Hanover Retaking Its Place as P/C Industry Leader

Apr 16 2012 // Eight out of 160 years of history may not seem like a big deal but for Hanover Insurance Group, founded in 1852, the last eight years have seen a series of big deals.Eight years ago in 2004, the $2.4 billion heavily...