Marine Cargo Insurance Committee of the Insurance Federation of Egypt plans to issue a policy insuring the responsibilities of the transporter towards the owners of the transported goods, said Tarek Sanad, member of the committee and deputy general manager of marine insurance compensations department at Suez Canal Insurance Company. The committee will start by next month drafting the insurance policy that will solve many problems of both the owners and transporters of the goods as the latter were not earlier allowed to insure the goods they transport, he added. More»

The Arab Misr Insurance Group (AMIG) has reviewed its global healthcare program with producers in the Egyptian market last week, said Ali Bashendy, head of technical affairs and reinsurance sector at AMIG. This review was made to market the unique insurance product and increase the insurance awareness of producers who market the products to customers. The global healthcare policy covers the treatment costs of the hospitalized patient, one-day treatment, medical practitioners’ fees, surgeries, cancer treatment (including radiation therapy and chemotherapy), dentistry, psychological illness, vaccinations, pregnancy and natural birth as well as travel insurance coverage. It is worth mentioning that AMIG still awaits the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority’s approval over the product. The maximum value of the personal insurance policy is US$ 1.2 million annually, while that of the comprehensive personal insurance is US$ 2.4 million annually and that of the premium personal insurance policy is US$ 3.2 million annually. More»

Premium income for the insurance industry in the Asia-Pacific region will double by 2020 according to a study published by Munich Re’s Economic Research Department. With more than €1 trillion, nearly half of the estimated additional global primary insurance premiums will be generated in Asia-Pacific until 2020 (worldwide €2.2 trillion). The contribution from “emerging Asia” – markets such as China or India – to this figure will be nearly 70% (about €670bn).Five of the expected global top-ten primary-insurance growth markets will be in the Asia-Pacific region, both in property/casualty (P/C) and in life. Munich Re expects China to be the country with the highest increase of primary insurance premiums worldwide until 2020 (additional €425bn), followed by the United States (additional €350bn) and Japan (additional €157bn).Emerging AsiaIn emerging Asia, P/C primary insurance premiums currently grow on average by 11% annually. This is twice as high as the second-placed region, Eastern Europe. Michael Menhart, Chief Economist at Munich Re, says: “China, India and Indonesia will be the top-three growth countries in P/C, with average growth of above 12% over the forecast period (2012-2020) in China and India, and almost 10% in Indonesia.” This means Indonesia’s P/C primary insurance volume will more than double in size from almost €3bn in 2012 to €7.3bn in 2020. Average growth rates of other emerging countries such as Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand range between 6% and 8%. This is driven by increasing risk awareness and a growing middle class. Rising consumer savings are fueling demand for life and health insurance, changing regulations and greater consumer protection will increase demand for motor and liability insurance, while large infrastructure investments will boost the demand for industrial insurance.Despite these substantial premium growth expectations, emerging Asia will continue to be severely underinsured, especially against natural catastrophes. More»

Uncertainty on the outlook of Egypt’s economy has driven Moody's Investors Service last Thursday to downgrade the country's sovereign foreign currency credit rating to Caa1 from B3, said a former senior official at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Having no clear economic plan, turning down an offer from the IMF to receive US$ 750 million emergency loan and having no other alternative financing sources have all blurred the future of the country’s economic situation, Dr. Fakhry El-Feky, former assistant to the executive director of the IMF affirmed. The main purpose behind cutting the sovereign credit rating is alarming the country to its deteriorating political and economic conditions and sending signs to investors about the country’s situation. The Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) foreign reserves fell to US$ 13.5 billion and the government failed to find alternative financing sources, he added. El-Feky rebutted that credit rating agencies are biased, affirming that these agencies have no interest to reduce the rating of a certain country as it cut the ratings of France and United States of America last year. If the current regime does not intervene to end the current political strives, Egypt’s credit rating will be downgraded again, even with an economic reform plan, he warned. More»

The Egyptian Takaful Company (Non-life) plans to raise its paid-up capital so as to continue its geographical and technical expansions in the current period, said Ahmed Arfin, managing director of the company. He revealed that the company’s authorized capital reached EGP 500 million and its paid-up capital reached EGP 100 million, adding that the company plans to expand in Delta, Ismailia and Sixth of October City. The current turmoil has made the company delay launching some insurance products such as the micro-insurance and real estate insurance products due to the recession that hit the real estate sector. Each of the following acquires 8.25% stake in the shareholding structure of the company: Arab International Bank, Banque Misr, Al Baraka Bank of Egypt, Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt, Arab Banking Corporation and Misr Iran Development Bank as well as Social Fund for Development. The remaining value is divided as such: Gulf Insurance Company (8.75%), Kuwait Projects Company (8.25%) and International Company for Leasing (Incolease) (8.5%), in addition to a Kuwaiti direct investment company (8.5%). More»

Egypt’s Insurance Brokerage Division’s board of directors decided to appoint Ahmed Naguib, managing director of Promise Insurance Brokerage, as the official spokesman, said Hamed Mabrouk, chairman of the Division and managing director of Gras Savoye Egypte (Insurance Brokers). Mabrouk stressed that any statement not released by Ahmed Naguib is negligible. Insurance Brokerage Division, which was founded last September, includes members at Egyptian Insurance Brokers Association (EIBA) which are: Gras Savoye, Promise Insurance Brokerage, EMKS Insurance Brokerage, Allied Arab Assurance Brokerage, Delta Misr Insurance Brokerage, EMAK Insurance Brokerage, Hadbrok Insurance Brokerage, Daman Insurance Brokers, Al Chark Insurance Brokerage, Red Sea Insurance Brokerage, Medmark Insurance Brokerage, Overseas Insurance Brokerage and Misr Insurance Brokerage. More»

The Egyptian Customs Authority (ECA) will have a meeting today with some officials from the US embassy to Cairo to discuss several joint topics and to enhance the ways of cooperation between the two countries for fighting the tax evasion. A reliable source in ECA said it is expected that some officials from ECA will convene a meeting the US embassy's officials to reinforce the ways of cooperation and exchange the information between the two countries to fight against the tax evasion. The source added that the Egyptian American cooperation aims at increasing the mutual quality criterion in implementing the international commercial agreements, in addition to facilitating the mutual customs deals. The US side, the source said, provides assistance to all the authorities and bodies based on implementing the law across the world. This comes in the framework of the USA's support to the Egyptian Customs Authority in order to carry out the best practices in the field of protecting the administrative responsibility of the workers, as well as improving their skills in this field. More»

Iskan Insurance Company plans to inaugurate two new branches outside Cairo, raising the number of its branches to five after launching a new branch in Nasr City at the beginning of the current fiscal year, said Hammam Badr, chairman and managing director of the company. The two branches will be likely opened up in Delta and Suez Canal governorates after the political situation stabilizes, he added. The two branches were slated to be launched in FY 2012/2013, but the current turmoil delayed the inauguration. The company also plans to open up a branch in Upper Egypt after the government announced it will start developing this region as insurance companies are oriented to regions that have investments and projects, he explained. He noted that the company depends on creating balance between its insurance and investment portfolios in order to keep its commitment towards policyholders. More»

Egypt's government expects to sign a deal with the International Monetary Fund by the end of June and to have received the first tranche of a $4.8 billion (3.1 billion pounds) loan by then, the planning minister told Al-Ahram online on Tuesday.More than two years of political upheaval have battered the economy, leaving Egypt in dire need of IMF funds to relieve a currency and budget crisis. The country's reserves of foreign currency have fallen to critically low levels.Planning Minister Ashraf Al-Araby did not say how big the first tranche of the IMF loan would be. He expected an IMF technical mission to arrive in Cairo in the coming days to complete talks on the deal.Araby also said discussions earlier this week with a senior International Monetary Fund official did not deal with the idea of an emergency IMF loan to tide the country over until a full agreement can be concluded.Masood Ahmed, director of the IMF's Middle East and Central Asia department, held talks in Cairo on Sunday, saying discussions would continue in the coming weeks with the aim of reaching a deal on possible financial support.An IMF deal will unlock billions of dollars in further support for Egypt. Araby said this would include $1 billion from the World Bank in the fiscal year that begins in July, as well as half a billion dollars from the African Development Bank and assistance from the European Union.Egypt's reserves of foreign currency stood at $13.5 billion at the end of February, below the $15 billion level needed to cover three months of imports. More»

Insurance companies in Egypt achieved premiums of EGP 11.022 billion in FY 2011/2012, compared to EGP 10.135 billion in FY 2010/2011, registering an increase of 8.7%, according the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority’s data. Public-business sector insurance companies accounted for 48.4% and private-sector insurance companies accounted for 51.6% of the total value of premiums achieved in the last fiscal year. The total value of compensations paid by insurance companies rose 32.8% to reach EGP 7.789 billion in the last fiscal year, compared to EGP 5.866 billion in FY 2010/2011. The public-business insurance companies accounted for 60.3% and private insurance companies accounted for 39.7% of paid compensations. The total value of insurance companies’ investments surged 9.4% to reach EGP 38.684 billion in the last fiscal year, compared to EGP 35.348 billion in FY 2010/2011. The net income from investments rose 22.1% to reach EGP 3.35 billion at the end of last June, compared to EGP 2.742 billion at the end of June 2011. The equity of policyholders rose 9.1% to reach EGP 30.444 billion at the end of the last fiscal year, compared to EGP 27.894 billion at the end of FY 2010/2011. The total value of shareholders’ equity surged 15.4% to reach EGP 7.884 billion at the end of June 2012, compared to EGP 6.831 billion at the end of June 2011. Indicators showed that the value of contributions to private insurance funds reached EGP 32.411 billion in FY 2011/2012, compared to EGP 30.349 billion in FY 2010/2011, registering an increase of 6.8%. Indicators also showed that the value of assets of insurance brokerage and reinsurance companies reached EGP 64 million at the end of December 2011, compared to EGP 37 million at the end of 2010, registering an increase of 73%. Egyptian insurance brokerage companies accounted for 61%, foreign insurance brokerage companies accounted for 22% and Egyptian-foreign joint insurance brokerage companies accounted for 17% of the value of assets in 2011. More»