Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Des Moines-Based Principal Financial Seeks $2 Billion From U.S. Treasury
Nov 20 2008 // Des Moines-based Principal Financial Group has applied to the U.S. Treasury for $2 billion from a capital purchase program. The retirement, insurance and financial services company says it would issue preferred shares and...
Lloyd’s and Rand Issue New Report on ‘Transatlantic Litigation Trends’
Nov 19 2008 // Lloyd’s and RAND have issued a new report on transatlantic litigation trends. The spread of what Lloyd’s Chairman Lord Peter Levene has called the “compensation culture,” is becoming an increasing...
AEGON May Buy U.S. Thrift
Nov 19 2008 // AEGON, the owner of Transamerica Corp., has confirmed that it is currently examining the possibility of acquiring a thrift in the United States. This would potentially allow the company to qualify for the U.S....
Obama Vows Climate Action Despite Financial Crisis
Nov 19 2008 // Barack Obama said Tuesday that the United States would “engage vigorously” in climate change talks when he is president, and he pledged to work to reduce emissions sharply by 2020, despite the financial...
U.S. Alters Strategy with China on Product Safety; Opens China Offices
Nov 19 2008 // The United States said this week that it has embarked on a new strategy with China to ensure that products imported into the U.S. are safe. Worries about the quality of Chinese exports to the U.S. have become a major...
Lloyd’s Expects U.S. To Adopt Federal Regulation of Insurance
Nov 19 2008 // Pushed by the global economic crisis, the United States is expected to embrace federal regulation of the insurance industry as early as 2009, according to some financial and insurance executives. Federal regulation in the...
Insurers Urged to Check Business Process Patents After Bilski Ruling
Nov 18 2008 // A recent federal court ruling could jeopardize the way some insurance, banking and high technology companies protect their business methods through patents. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit...
Somali Pirates Hijack Saudi Supertanker off East Africa
Nov 18 2008 // Somali pirates have captured a fully laden Saudi supertanker far off east Africa, seizing the biggest vessel ever hijacked with a cargo of oil worth over $100 million in an attack that pushed world crude prices higher. The...
Survey: Women Business Owners Optimistic on 2009 Despite Liability Risk
Nov 17 2008 // Nearly three in five (58 percent) women business owners anticipate that their organizations’ revenues will grow in 2009, and nearly one-half (44 percent) do not expect difficulty in obtaining access to credit,...
EU, U.S. Warn China on Toy Safety Before Christmas
Nov 17 2008 // The consumer chiefs of the European Union and the United States called on China on Monday to crack down on unsafe products, especially toys, ahead of Christmas. More than 20 million Chinese-made toys were recalled...
Scorecard: Small Business at the Supreme Court
Nov 16 2008 // There is no question that the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions impact small business. In fact, studies have shown that more than 40 percent of the court’s cases deal with issues that directly affect the business...
It Figures
Nov 16 2008 // $11.5 Billion The amount U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses for third-quarter property losses resulting from a total of 11 catastrophes in 22 states, according to preliminary...
Successive Hurricanes: Potential Windfall for Insureds?
Nov 16 2008 // The 2008 hurricane season came very close to presenting, on a large scale, the potential quandary caused by successive losses. On Sept.1, 2008, Hurricane Gustav came ashore and caused substantial damage from the Louisiana...
People
Nov 16 2008 // The Texas Surplus Lines Association Inc. elected new officers and directors at its 52nd annual meeting held Nov. 3, 2008, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. The new officers are: President Paul Rainey, president of RSI...
Insurance Industry’s Political Contributions to Democrats Spike in 2008
Nov 16 2008 // Political contributions to Democratic candidates in the 2008 election spiked more than 10 percent overall, according to data from the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan, independent research group that tracks...
CEO of New Marsh Retail Agency Sees Lean, Nimble Operation
Nov 16 2008 // New Nationwide Entity to Target Smaller U.S.-Based Companies with Less Complex Needs, Says CEO Butcher Global insurance broker Marsh, accustomed to handling large and complex insurance accounts, has its eye on the $80...
Catlin Group’s Interim Management Statement Shows Top Line Gains
Nov 14 2008 // The Bermuda-based Catlin Group Limited has just released its “Interim management Statement,” which shows premium gains in most sectors, but did not give fianncial results. Catlin operates extensively in the...
Meltdown 101: Why Did the AIG Bailout Get Bigger?
Nov 12 2008 // It’s a $150 billion gamble. That’s the size of the newly enlarged financial lifeline the U.S. government threw tottering insurance giant American International Group on Monday, expanding an aid package...
Survey Finds World Business Leaders Back More Regulation
Nov 12 2008 // Business leaders around the world back greater regulation in response to the global financial crisis, a survey showed on Wednesday, with support strongest for curbs on credit rating firms, hedge funds and structured...
AIG Outlines Revised Bailout Plan
Nov 10 2008 // American International Group, Inc. (AIG) today announced agreements with the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve to establish a durable capital structure for AIG, and facilities designed to resolve the liquidity issues...
