Archive
International News Services archives articles supplied to clients one year or more after initial publication. These articles are protected by a password and not made available to readers without permission from clients. They are used as a background resource by agency journalists. Upon client requests, International News Services will remove such articles from the archive or not upload them in the first place. They are included to demonstrate the breadth of topics undertaken by the agency and also to help promote clients’ coverage.
ECB BANK RISK
BY KEITH NUTHALL
EURO area banks using the EU single currency are still facing higher than average risks from defaults and business collapses, but the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by their executives to manage exposure to risk is standing them in good stead for the future, the European Central Bank has said.…
MULTI-MODAL
BY KEITH NUTHALL
A GLOBAL questionnaire on container transport insurance has been launched by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, (UNCITRAL), which wants to kick start efforts to create a UN convention on liability for multi-modal transportation.
The UN agency has pointed out that despite the huge growth in container movements, (from zero in 1965 to 225.3 million in 2000), there is still no global set of rules governing responsibility for cargo carried by combined transport operations involving ships, rail and roads.…
FINANCIAL CONGLOMERATES
BY KEITH NUTHALL
EUROPEAN Union ministers have approved in principle reforms to EU regulations on financial conglomerates, which have been designed to avoid an Enron-style scandal in Europe. They include rules insisting on the creation of national regulators whose job is to supervise conglomerates and help improve the flow of information about their accounts.…
ECB BANK RISK
BY KEITH NUTHALL
EURO area banks using the EU single currency are still facing higher than average risks from defaults and business collapses, but the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by their executives to manage exposure to risk is standing them in good stead for the future, the European Central Bank has said.…
MULTI-MODAL
BY KEITH NUTHALL
A GLOBAL questionnaire on container transport insurance has been launched by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, (UNCITRAL), which wants to kick start efforts to create a UN convention on liability for multi-modal transportation.
The UN agency has pointed out that despite the huge growth in container movements, (from zero in 1965 to 225.3 million in 2000), there is still no global set of rules governing responsibility for cargo carried by combined transport operations involving ships, rail and roads.…
LIFE SIMPLIFICATION
BY KEITH NUTHALL
A SIMPLIFICATION of European Union life insurance legislation has been approved by the European Parliament and will now come into force, rolling the many EU rules and regulations affecting the industry into one single code.
Part of an ongoing effort to streamline Brussels’ often baffling and Byzantine strands of legislation, MEP’s agreed with ministers to delay final approval of a united life directive, so that recent changes on solvency margins could be incorporated.…
MEDIATION DIRECTIVE
BY KEITH NUTHALL
A EUROPEAN Union directive, regulating insurance mediators, such as brokers, has been approved by the EU Council of Ministers and will come into force as soon as procedural steps are taken.
The insurance mediation directive will allow brokers, banks and car dealers selling policies to trade across the EU by registering in their home Member State.…
GREENPEACE CASE
BY MARK ROWE
ENVIRONMENTAL organisations and an American local authority have issued a lawsuit against the US government for its contribution to global warming, a move that may have important repercussions for the insurance industry.
A lawsuit filed in the US District Court in San Francisco claims that two American export credit agencies illegally provided US$32billion in financing for oil fields, pipelines and coal-fired power plants over the past 10 years without assessing their contribution to global warming.…
GERMAN WATER PROJECT
BY KEITH NUTHALL
GERMAN insurance group Gerling is providing financial and managerial support to a ground-breaking environmental initiative in the hope that it will be copied and that the company will be asked to underwrite similar initiatives because of its expertise.…
HEALTH AND SAFETY SOFTWARE
BY KEITH NUTHALL
A PRACTICAL tool to help businesses evaluate the entire impact of workplace accidents, and conduct cost-benefit analyses of measures they can take to prevent them, has been launched by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.…