The underwriting division of the regional insurance industry is expected to expand substantially over the next year, as companies reeling from the effects of the global financial crisis concentrate more on their core business of writing risks rather than on the increasingly dismal investment side of the industry, which has already given the industry quite a beating. “In 2008 the poor results are due to [losses in] investment income,” said Farid Chedid, managing director at Chedid Re. “What we are expecting is that because of poor investment income and the negative investment environment in general, insurers and reinsurers will to look to increase their underwriting profits to sustain all the damage that was created by the global financial crisis. Hence, we are expecting more profits on the insurance [underwriting] side.” Changing direction But even if regional companies are intent on a paradigm shift in priorities from investment to underwriting, the
