Latest S&P Headlines

All the headlines from our S&P Topic Page, ordered by recency.

S&P’s Hosts 18th Annual Conference June 1-3

May 13 2003 // Unprecedented challenges facing the U.S. insurance industry in the past year, including asbestos claims and lawsuits, terrorism, a weak economy, and a continuing weak investment markets, have many insurance executives...

S&P Affirms White Mountains ‘BBB-‘ Ratings

May 9 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has affirmed its ‘BBB-‘ counterparty credit rating on White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd. (WTM) and its ‘BBB-‘ counterparty credit...

S&P Affirms American National ‘AA’ Ratings

May 8 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has affirmed its ‘AA’ counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on American National Insurance Co., “based on the company’s...

S&P Places AMP Ratings on CreditWatch Negative

May 1 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has placed the ‘AA-‘ insurer financial strength and counterparty credit ratings on AMP Life Ltd., the Australian operating subsidiary of AMP Ltd....

S&P’s Affirms Ohio Casualty ‘BBB’ Ratings

May 1 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said today that it affirmed its “BBB” counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on American Fire & Casualty Co., Ohio Casualty Insurance Co., Ohio...

S&P Says Taiwan’s General Insurers Return to Stability

Apr 29 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, in a new publication entitled “Taiwan Insurance Outlook 2003,” announced that it has revised its outlook on Taiwan’s nonlife insurance sector to stable from...

S&P Assigns White Hall Mutual Insurance Co. ‘R’ Rating

Apr 25 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that that it has assigned its ‘R’ financial strength rating to White Hall Mutual Insurance Co., a 160-year-old P/C insurer based in Doylestown PA,...

S&P Says a “Shakeout” is Due in Thailand’s General Insurance Sector

Apr 23 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has assigned a stable outlook to the financial strength of Thailand’s general insurance sector, based on “the industry’s satisfactory...

S&P’s Affirms Alfa Insurance Group Ratings

Apr 23 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced it affirmed the “AA” long-term counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on the members of Alabama-based Alfa Insurance Group (Alfa), based on...

S&P’s Revises Fremont General Corp. Outlook

Apr 21 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services revised its outlook on Fremont General Corp. to stable from negative and affirmed its ratings on the Santa Monica, Calif.-based company, including Fremont’s...

S&P’s ARTICLE DISCUSSES INSURER CREDIT, LIQUIDITY SUPPORT

Apr 21 2003 // Standard & Poor’s has published an article that explains the rating criteria for credit and liquidity support provided by insurers. Capital-markets transactions are often supported by credit or liquidity...

Gulf Insurance Group Cut

Apr 21 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services lowered its long-term counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on the members of the Gulf Insurance Group (Gulf) to “A+” from “AA-.” The...

Top Layer Reinsurance IFS Rating Affirmed by S&P’s

Apr 16 2003 // Standard & Poor’s has affirmed its ‘AA’ financial strength rating on Top Layer Reinsurance Ltd. (Top Layer), a Bermuda-based reinsurer of risk-remote property catastrophe exposure, based on support...

S&P’s Says SARS Could Damage Health of Emerging Asian Companies

Apr 15 2003 // Standard & Poor’s reports that a recent outbreak of a pneumonia-like illness known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in greater China and southeast Asia is unlikely to have any immediate impact on its...

S&P’s Cuts Attorneys Liability Protection Soc. RRG Ratings; Off Negative Watch

Apr 14 2003 // Standard & Poor’s has lowered its counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on Attorneys Liability Protection Society Inc., A Risk Retention Group (ALPS) to ‘BBB’ from ‘A-‘ and...

S&P’s Report Evaluates Calif.’s WC Market

Apr 14 2003 // Strict underwriting controls imposed on the California State Compensation Insurance Fund(SCIF) are one bright spot in a gloomy scene for workers’ compensation writers in the state, according to a new report by...

S&P’s Report Evaluates Calif.’s WC Market

Apr 11 2003 // Strict underwriting controls imposed on the California State Compensation Insurance Fund(SCIF) are one bright spot in a gloomy scene for workers’ compensation writers in the state, according to a new report by...

S&P Lowers AEGON’s Ratings to ‘A+/A-1’

Apr 9 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services announced that it has lowered its counterparty credit rating on AEGON N.V. (AEGON) to ‘A+/A-1’ from ‘AA-/A-1+’ “because of Standard &...

S&P’s Withdraws Mountbatten Surety Co. Inc. ‘A+’ Ratings

Apr 9 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has withdrawn its ‘A+’ counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on the Mountbatten Surety Co. Inc. at the company’s request. “This rating...

S&P Ratings on Gerling to Remain on CreditWatch

Apr 4 2003 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services reacted to the news that talks between Germany’s Gerling Group and HDI have broken off (See IJ Website April 3) with an announcement that its current ‘BB+’...