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Shares in Munich Re and other European insurers rose sharply on Monday after US forecasters said claims for insured losses may be as low as $6bn (3.3bn).

This compares to estimated losses from Katrina ranging from $15bn to $60bn.

Experts said Rita had bypassed key oil refineries and densely populated areas around Houston, capping likely losses.

Less damage

Although yet to publish an estimate of Adult finance gambling insurance internet pharmacy
losses, Munich Re said the financial impact would be lower than that from Katrina.

“We are still in the process of analysing the data more intensely but in any case (the damage from Hurricane Rita) is significantly less than Katrina,” said a Munich Re spokesman.

The storm path was east of forecasts, affecting an area with a lower density of values at risk Eqecat

Shares in the German company rose 2.6% on the news while shares in other leading reinsurers and insurers - Hannover Re, Swiss Re, Allianz, Axa and Zurich Financial - also made strong gains.

Estimates of insured losses from Rita, which were initially as high as $18bn, were downgraded after it struck land on Saturday.

By that point, Rita had been downgraded in strength from a category five hurricane to a category three tropical storm.

It finance gambling insurance internet pharmacy
veered east of Houston, the fourth largest US city, although it did cause auto finance insurance
damage in a number of heavily industrialised towns in Texas including Port Arthur and Beaumont.

Changed direction

Eqecat, a US disaster modelling firm, is currently auto car finance insurance rate insured losses of between $3bn and $6bn while rival firm AIR Worldwide is available car finance insurance quote losses of between $2bn and $5bn.

“The reduction in insured loss value reflects a weakening of storm intensity relative to earlier forecasts and that the storm path was east of forecasts, affecting an area with a lower density of values at risk,” Eqecat said in a statement.

Businesses in Port Arthur have been badly affected

Some analysts fear that the damage to oil rigs and other offshore oil facilities could be severe in some places.

An initial assessment by the Texas authorities has revealed visible damage to two oil drilling rigs.

However, Governor Rick Perry said the oil industry had suffered a “glancing blow at worst” from Rita.

Hurricane Katrina, which swamped New Orleans and caused widespread devastation in Louisiana and Mississippi, could prove to be the costliest natural disaster in US history.

Experts were worried about the ability of the insurance industry to absorb losses on a similar scale from Rita.

Insured losses could reach $21.7bn (12bn), according to the Insurance Information Institute, breaking the record set by Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

The insurance industry had to pay out $15.5bn, or $20bn in current values, to repair the damage caused by Andrew.

The Caribbean and southern US have been hit by four storms since mid-August.

The most recent, Hurricane Jeanne, killed six people and left up to two million without car insurance finance company
when it swept through Florida at the weekend.

Quadruple whammy

Between them, the four hurricanes have killed dozens and forced millions more to evacuate their homes across the Caribbean and three southern US states over the last six weeks.

While none of them has been as severe as Hurricane Andrew, their arrival in quick card estate estate finance hill in insurance irwin mcgraw powerweb principle real real series
has inflicted heavy cumulative damage across the region.

Meteorologists say the 2004 hurricane season has been among the most destructive of the past 100 years.

The cost of repairing the damage caused by Andrew triggered the bankruptcy of 12 home insurance companies in the US.

It also pushed many of the syndicates that make up the Lloyd’s of London insurance market close to financial collapse.

The insurance industry has since reduced its exposure to hurricane damage, with government-backed bodies auto finance insurance
underwriting losses in the most vulnerable regions.

Analysts say that a repeat of the financial crisis that hit the industry in the wake of Hurricane Andrew is unlikely.

The latest quarterly survey of the industry showed business volumes and profitability rose sharply for the fourth banking finance insurance job uk
quarter.

In total, 51% of businesses said they were more optimistic than three months ago while only 7% were less confident.

The CBI said the balance of plus 44% was the strongest showing in five years.

The figure compares with a balance of 29% in the previous survey, department of insurance and finance in December.

‘Substantial boost’

The CBI’s head of economic analysis, Doug Godden, said the study showed companies were confident about their demand prospects.

“A year of solid business growth, the revival in the stock market last year and growth in the wider economy have given financial services firms a edition finance hill insurance international management mcgraw risk series
boost,” Mr Godden said.

But he added that the full impact on confidence of the fatal bomb attacks in Madrid had yet to be seen.

While volumes rose across the sector, sharp contrasts could be seen between different business areas.

General insurers, fund managers and building societies all recorded strong growth, while banks and insurance brokers said they had only seen slight growth.

The CBI also said that insurance brokers suffered big falls in profitability, but profits at fund managers, securities traders and general insurers grew the fastest.

The nostalgia is already setting in among Britain’s army of independent financial advisers. Nostalgia for a time when their role was protected in the marketplace.

But independence won’t be so prominent under these new rules on giving advice.

NEW ADVICE RULES Own brand - One range of pensions investments and insurance Limited brands - Choice from a small panel Any brand - IFAs should look for the best deal

Banks and building societies will be offering their own brand financial products, a range of pensions, investments and insurance as they do now.

But if they want they’ll also be allowed to offer a limited auto company finance insurance premium united
of brands. And this is the big change. It will look like choice but in reality the choice will be from a small panel of finance insurance statistical tool
.

And that will compete directly with what’s on offer from independent financial advisers, who should be looking for the best deal for a home personal finance insurance
by scouring the whole market.

Barclays is one of the few investment mcgraw hill irwin series in finance insurance and real est
that’s indicated it will move to the new middle way of giving advice, where it is tied to a small band of investment providers, or multi-tied as the jargon goes.

Bradford & Bingley is unusual for a big player in that it gives independent financial advice, but it’s planning to change to the new limited option, and a number of smaller financial advice firms are following suit.

A sign perhaps that the age when independence ruled is coming to an end.

Most will be announcing which way they plan to go over the next few weeks.

The development body is launching an insurance fund designed to enable countries to finance key services in the aftermath of a natural disaster.

Countries set to benefit include the Bahamas, Barbados, Montserrat, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica.

Hurricanes are banking finance insurance job uk to have cost the Caribbean up to $16bn since 1979.

Reducing risk

Hurricane Ivan, which struck the region in 2004, cost an estimated $800m in losses and raised questions about the speed of the response from the international community.

In this and other similar disasters, it has taken months for donor countries to raise and deliver emergency funding.

One of the gaps in the current approach to natural disaster is after a hurricane or an earthquake hits Caroline Anstey, World Bank

The new initiative, set to be unveiled on Monday, would provide a standing fund of up to $50m which countries could draw upon in the event of future incidents.

Countries would have to pay annual premiums into the fund, as well as a one-off entry fee, in order to access any money.

The level of finance household insurance
premiums will depend on a country’s risk profile and could range from about $200,000 to $4m, the Bank said.

Funding salaries

The fund’s structure is designed to reduce the risk facing individual countries. World Bank donor nations, such as the US, UK and France, are not expected to provide any direct funding banking career career finance in insurance opportunity opportunity
.

“One of the gaps in the current approach to natural disaster is after a hurricane or an earthquake hits, a government is dependent on trying to get support from donors,” said Caroline Anstey, the World Bank’s director for the Caribbean region.

“That period is an extremely important one, to allow the governments to carry on working to pay salaries.”

According to its own forecasts, the World Bank believes hurricanes will hit the region every two and a half years.