Printed from BusinessInsurance.com

GLOBAL BRIEFS

Posted On: Aug. 17, 1997 12:00 AM CST

U.K. businesses already are preparing for hits to their profits as a result of the government's decision to remove tax credits from pension funds. Last week, engineering and construction company Glynwed International P.L.C. warned investors that contributions into the organization's pension plan will be increased in the second half of this year, likely lowering returns to shareholders. . . .Corporate capital investors in Lloyd's of London will have greater representation on the Council of Lloyd's, the organization's ruling body, in 1997. In elections set for later this year, an extra seat on the Council will be made available for corporate capital members, though this still brings their total representation to only two places, compared with five representing the interests of traditional unlimited liability names. . . .Ton van der Minnen has been appointed treaty underwriter at the Amsterdam office of CNA International Reinsurance Co. Ltd., and Barbara Frei has been appointed assistant casualty underwriter at the reinsurer's Zurich office as part of CNA's European expansion program

. . . .The Assn. of British Insurers and the Assn. of Insurance & Risk Managers have mustered forces to lobby government to avert the flood threat facing London. Ground water levels are rising by almost 10 feet each year, according to AIRMIC, threatening London's subway, telecommunications systems and buildings. AIRMIC and the ABI, along with London companies, have proposed a London-wide solution, including digging a number of boreholes, which are sunk into aquifers, and providing that water for general supply. . . .CIGNA Corp. has opened a third representative office in China, in Guangzhou. . . .Rating agency Standard & Poor's Corp. has affirmed its AA- rating for Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group P.L.C. as a reflection of what it called the group's very strong market position, good earnings potential and robust capitalization. Long-term goals and strategies still are to be set, following last year's merger of Royal Insurance P.L.C. and Sun Alliance Group P.L.C., though S&P expects the group to continue improving efficiencies. RSA is aiming for annual savings of 175 million pounds ($276.3 million) as of 1998 as a result of the merger. . . .S&P also has confirmed its AAA rating for Munich Reinsurance Co. A.G. and its subsidiaries Munich Reinsurance Co. of Australia Ltd., American Re-insurance Co. and American Alternative Insurance Corp. Rating factors include Munich Re's pre-eminent position in the global reinsurance market, its acquisition of Am Re and the proposed merger of Hamburg-Mannheimer Versicherungs and Deutsche Krankenversicherungs with Victoria Versicherungs and D.A.S. Versicherungs to form the Ergo insurance group, which S&P anticipates will "considerably improve Munich Re's risk and business profile."