Commercial Insurers May Face Steep Payouts From Hurricane
Wall Street analysts predict that commercial property-casualty insurers will pay for more of the damage from Hurricane Katrina than they have from other catastrophic storms in the past.
Wall Street analysts predict that commercial property-casualty insurers will pay for more of the damage from Hurricane Katrina than they have from other catastrophic storms in the past.
This time, the storm affected a very developed city with a plethora of stores, restaurants and other businesses. Deutsche Bank reports that a few dozen or so insurers around the globe have projected nearly $4 billion in losses to date — including such major firms as Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd. and Swiss Reinsurance Co., which estimated up to $1.88 billion just between them.
Since Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast region late last month, the stocks of commercial insurers have been fairly stable as investors expect the various companies to hike rates to compensate and to drive up earnings.
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