Latest Trends Headlines

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

Global Reinsurance Rates, Demand to Continue Rising in 2022

Sep 7 2021 // Global reinsurance rates are likely to continue rising next year after several years of increases, though the pace of increase may slow, ratings analysts said on Tuesday.Reinsurance rates have been rising in the past few...

Survey: 9 Midwest, Plains States See Steady Economic Growth

Sep 7 2021 // The economy keeps operating at a healthy pace in nine Midwest and Plains states, but supply delays and shortages of workers are limiting growth in the region, according to a new monthly survey of business leaders.The...

ESG and the Future of Energy

Sep 6 2021 // One area receiving increased scrutiny by underwriters are ESG related issues, or environmental, societal and government requirements, according to Ricky Bryan, executive vice president, IMA Financial Group Inc., and...

Insurance Industry Keeping Up With an Energy Market in Transition

Sep 6 2021 // Last year was a wild one for the energy sector. There were, of course, COVID-19 related issues. The sector also dealt with continuing pressure on insurer capacity for some energy sectors due to environmental concerns, oil...

Florida Workers’ Comp Rates Set to Decrease, Again

Sep 3 2021 // Florida workers’ compensation rates are set to decline again as the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) has proposed a statewide rate decrease of 4.9% in the voluntary market.The rates would take effect...

AIR Worldwide Estimates Insured Losses for Hurricane Ida Could Be Up to $25 Billion

Sep 3 2021 // Insurance industry insured losses to onshore property resulting from Hurricane Ida’s winds and storm surge will range from $17 billion to $25 billion.AIR’s modeled insured loss estimates include insured...

Traffic Deaths Up 10.5% in First Three Months of 2021

Sep 2 2021 // New data shows a sustained increase in U.S. traffic deaths that regulators ascribe to impaired driving, speeding, a failure to wear seats beats and other unsafe behavior since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.The...

Singapore Exchange Looks to Tap Into SPAC Trend by Relaxing Rules

Sep 2 2021 // Singapore Exchange unveiled new rules allowing special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) to list in the city-state, after easing some measures viewed as too strict by participants, as it seeks to tap a global trend in...

Judge Will Approve Purdue Bankruptcy Plan, Freeing Sacklers From Future Liability Suits

Sep 2 2021 // A U.S. judge said on Wednesday he would approve OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP’s bankruptcy reorganization plan, clearing a path to resolve thousands of opioid lawsuits and shielding the company’s wealthy...

Japan Sees a Future in Crewless Cargo Ships as First Autonomous Trial Voyage Nears

Aug 31 2021 // In just two decades from now, half of all domestic ships plying Japan’s coastal waters may be piloting themselves.That’s the ambitious goal of the Nippon Foundation, a public-interest organization backing the...

Global Insurance M&A Drops 3% in 1st Half of 2021: Clyde & Co. Report

Aug 27 2021 // Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the global insurance industry dropped 3% in the first half of 2021 with 197 completed deals worldwide, down from 206 in the second half of 2020, according to Clyde & Co.’s...

Reinsurance Prices Expected to Harden at Jan. 2022 Renewals – with Less Momentum

Aug 24 2021 // Global reinsurers’ underwriting performance will continue to improve in 2022 as premium rate increases take hold, with further rate hikes expected as a result of higher catastrophe losses, continued low interest...

Rain Falls at Highest Point on Greenland’s Ice Sheet for 1st Time on Record

Aug 23 2021 // Rain fell at the highest point on the Greenland ice sheet last week for the first time on record, another worrying sign of warming for the ice sheet already melting at an increasing rate, scientists said on...

Maine Enacts Law That Will Ban Use of ‘Forever Chemicals’ in All Products by 2030

Aug 20 2021 // Maine last month enacted a law that makes it the first U.S. state to ban the use of PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in nearly all products. PFAS are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals”...

Outlooks Revised to Positive for Oklahoma’s National American Insurance

Aug 19 2021 // AM Best revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) of National American Insurance Co....

Connecticut Insurance Department Releases National Survey on Climate Risk

Aug 18 2021 // Connecticut is continuing to engage with the insurance industry on climate change and its implications with its latest release of a national survey on climate risk in the insurance industry.Previously one of six states...

AM Best: Outlooks Negative for Wisconsin Reinsurance Group Members

Aug 17 2021 // AM Best revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “bbb” (Good) of Madison-based Wisconsin Reinsurance Corp....

Agencies Ride Commercial Prices, Reopened Economy to Record Organic Growth

Aug 17 2021 // Buoyed by the hard market and rebounding economy, Independent insurance agents and brokers grew overall by 7.1% in the second quarter, surpassing the 6.9% organic growth reported eight years ago in the second quarter of...

Forecast: Smaller Corn Crop Expected in Kansas

Aug 16 2021 // Kansas farmers are expected to harvest a smaller corn crop this season, according to a forecast released Aug. 12. The National Agricultural Statistics Service said in its monthly production report that the state is...

Insurance Fraud Referrals Up by 11% in Minnesota in 2020

Aug 16 2021 // The number of insurance fraud investigations in Minnesota in 2020 rose by 11% compared with 2019, according to the state’s primary law enforcement agency focused on white collar crime.The Minnesota Commerce Fraud...