What’s New: In Brief (April 26, 2007)

The Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) has prepared a ‘Report on Action on the IPRC Principles by Industry Associations,’ which is anticipated to be posted on the CCIR website. The CCIRs industry practices review committee (IPRC) is conducting a review confirming the extent to which its 2006 recommended principles have been embraced by industry and to assess whether further regulatory action is required. The CCIR report follows the IPRCs review of whether the insurance industry has implemented the principles in its business practices.The IPRC in 2006 published three principles to which the insurance industry is expected to adhere. They are: (1) priority of the clients interest, (2) disclosure of potential conflicts of interest, and (3) product suitability.

Munich Re is anticipating a good 2007 Q1 in spite of losses incurred as a result of European winter storm Kyrill.Munich Re board of management chair Nikolaus von Bomhard noted in a press release that Munich Re would be publishing its 2007 Q1 results on May 4. But “so far we are on track, he said. Apart from European Winter Storm Kyrill, it was a good quarter.” Von Bomhard said investment gains would help make up for Q1 losses as a result of Kyrill. Gains on the sale of real estate, already initiated last year, will partly compensate for the losses sustained from Kyrill, he said.For 2007, von Bomhard said he is aiming for a profit of between 2.8 billion and 3.2 billion (between Cdn$4.27 billion and Cdn$4.88 billion) for the Munich Re Group around 10% more than the range of 2.6 billion to 2.8 billion (Cdn$3.9 billion to Cdn$4.27 billion) envisaged a year ago for 2006.