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Large-Scale Disasters and the Insurance Industry

Author

Listed:
  • Walter Kraemer
  • Sebastian Schich

Abstract

We investigate the impact of the 20 largest – in terms of insured losses – man-made or natural disasters on various insurance industry stock indices. We show via an event study that insurance sectors worldwide are quite resilient, in a market–value sense, to unexpected losses to capital: our data provide evidence that equity market investors believe that insurance companies will on average be able to make losses back over the foreseeable future, i.e. that the adverse shocks to equity which have resulted from these catastrophes will be compensated by either an outward shift of the demand curve or an ability to raise premiums, or both.

Suggested Citation

  • Walter Kraemer & Sebastian Schich, 2008. "Large-Scale Disasters and the Insurance Industry," CESifo Working Paper Series 2243, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_2243
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Valizadeh, Pourya & Karali, Berna & Ferreira, Susana, 2017. "Ripple effects of the 2011 Japan earthquake on international stock markets," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 556-576.
    2. Kleidt Benjamin & Schiereck Dirk & Sigl-Grueb Christof, 2009. "Rationality at the Eve of Destruction: Insurance Stocks and Huge Catastrophic Events," Journal of Business Valuation and Economic Loss Analysis, De Gruyter, vol. 4(2), pages 1-27, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    disaster; insurance industry; event-study;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E44 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy
    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading

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