Swiss Re Ltd., the world’s second – biggest reinsurer, fell the most in six months in Zurich trading after Willis Re said reinsurance prices slid by as much as 25 percent in the Jan. 1 renewals round.
Swiss Re declined as much as 2.9 percent to 79.70 Swiss francs [$88.38], the biggest loss since July 2 and valuing the company at 29.6 billion Swiss francs ($32.9 billion). That was the worst performance on the Bloomberg Europe 500 Insurance Index. The shares decreased 2.8 percent by 12:27 p.m.
A “cocktail of converging factors,” including too much excess reinsurance capital, has fueled a soft buyers’ market with dropping prices, Willis Re, the reinsurance brokerage of Willis Group Holdings Plc, said in an e-mailed report two days ago.
Munich Re, the world’s biggest re-insurer, fell 0.8 percent and Hannover Re lost 0.1 percent. Reinsurers typically renew about two-thirds of their annual property and casualty contracts in January.
The outcome of the renewals round is worse than expected, Daniel Bischof, a Zurich-based analyst with Helvea AG, said in a note to investors.
–Editors: Mark Bentley, Steve Bailey
Topics Pricing Trends Reinsurance
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Hackers Strike Ivy League Schools Already Under Political Pressure 
Homesellers Pull Listings Off Market as Interest Fades 
‘Clear Soft Market Conditions’ for Commercial P/C Lines in Q3, Says CIAB 
Lawsuit Alleges Farm Bureau Financial Concealed Fraudulent Activities 
