Reinsurance

Due to low catastrophe activity Keefe, Bruyette and Woods expects good first-quarter earnings for the property and casualty insurance industry.

Due to low catastrophe activity Keefe, Bruyette and Woods expects good first-quarter earnings for the property and casualty insurance industry.

Employment for property and casualty insurers fell in February compared to January, continuing a trend that began in 2008 during which P&C insurers have shed nearly 11,000 jobs, Insurance Information Institute President Robert Hartwig says.

Global-reinsurer capital declined 3 percent in 2011 over the previous year as first-quarter catastrophes and reduction in capacity from government programs took a big chunk out of the total, says reinsurance broker Aon Benfield.

The break-up of Ariel Re finished with both Arch and Goldman Sachs saying they have completed their purchases of Ariel Re Credit and Surety and Ariel Reinsurances Bermuda operations.

An earthquake registering magnitude 8.6 earthquake off the Northern coast of Sumatra stirred fears of the horrendous events of almost three years ago, but appears to have produced little significant damage.