A.M. Best Affirms Rating of Oriental Fire & Marine.OLDWICK, N.J. -- A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating of B++ (Very Good) of Oriental Fire & Marine Insurance Company Ltd. (Oriental) (South Korea). The outlook is stable. The rating reflects Oriental's consistent and stable operating performance, high-quality and liquid investment portfolio and strong market position, especially in commercial lines. Oriental's risk adjusted capitalization has been maintained in fiscal year 2003 after a strong improvement in fiscal year 2002, as measured by the Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio Capital adequacy ratio (CAR), also called Capital to Risk (Weighted) Assets Ratio (CRAR)[], is a ratio of a bank's capital to its risk. National regulators track a bank's CAR to ensure that it can absorb a reasonable amount of loss. (BCAR BCAR Brunswick County Association of Realtors BCAR British Civil Airworthiness Requirements BCAR Bullitt County Animal Rescue (Shepherdsville, KY) BCAR Business Case Analysis Report BCAR Beaver Creek Array BCAR Buffalo Civic Auto Ramps, Inc. ). The Korean solvency ratio Solvency Ratio One of many ratios used to gauge a company's ability to meet long-term obligations. Notes: Derived by taking a company's net worth and dividing by total assets. See also: Asset, Asset Valuation, Balance Sheet, Fundamental Analysis, Income Statement improved to 186% in fiscal year 2003 from 163% in fiscal year 2001. As the company targets double-digit growth to increase the current premium market share of 10%, the improvement in risk-based capitalization may slow down. During the last five years, Oriental has shown stable operating performance with an operating ratio Operating Ratio A ratio that shows the efficiency of management by comparing operating expense to net sales: of 97% as of fiscal year 2003, which is in line with other major non-life companies. Due to the lower proportion of fixed interest rate reserve in its long-term savings liability, the company is less exposed to interest risk compared to its larger competitors. Although bipolarization has been the recent trend in the Korean non-life market, the company, which is the fifth-largest player in the Korean non-life sector, has grown faster than the market, maintaining its position at the higher end Coordinates: For other places with the same name, see Billinge. Higher End or Billinge Higher End is a district of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. . Overall, A.M. Best expects Oriental to maintain its current stable profitability and market presence. Offsetting factors include the company's high underwriting leverage, low persistency in long-term business and the rapidly changing non-life insurance market in Korea. Market penetration Noun 1. market penetration - the extent to which a product is recognized and bought by customers in a particular market penetration - the act of entering into or through something; "the penetration of upper management by women" of companies selling products through direct distribution channels has increased in recent years. Oriental is facing new challenges such as bancassurance Bancassurance A French term referring to the selling of insurance through a bank's established distribution channels. Notes: The result is a bank that can offer banking, insurance, lending, and investment products to a customer. and competition from other financial institutions. The ability of the company to cooperate with other financial institutions will become increasingly important. In A.M. Best's opinion, Oriental's long corporate history with its flexible corporate strategy has prepared the company reasonably well for such foreseeable industry developments. For current Best's Ratings Best's rating A rating A.M. Best Co. assigns to insurance companies based on the company's ability to meet its obligations to its policyholders. , independent data and analysis on more than 3,000 individual property/casualty companies, groups and industry composites, please visit http://www.ambest.com/pc. A.M. Best Co., established in 1899, is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit A.M. Best's Web site at http://www.ambest.com. |
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