Taiwan’s life insurance companies would continue to move toward global standards in their product mix, solvency regime and investment strategy, which will enhance their resilience, Fitch Ratings said on Monday.
The convergence will include the adoption of new accounting rules, a shift to a new solvency regime and the associated changes to product mix, investment strategy and capital requirements, as well as the promotion of sustainable finance, Fitch said.
In the past few years, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has tightened regulations to prepare life insurers for new global accounting standards and migration to a new solvency regime, the ratings agency said.
Following these regulatory changes, Fitch said it has observed a favorable shift away from savings-type insurance products and toward more foreign-currency products.
The FSC has also permitted a wider investment scope to allow better asset-liability management by life insurers and promoted risk management that is more aligned with global practices, Fitch said.
The financial regulator began to address the potential capital gap well in advance by requiring life insurers to make up for the shortfall in insurance reserves and recently introduced a net-worth-to-assets ratio threshold to limit leverage, Fitch said.
The FSC might release more details on the three-stage road map it announced in July last year for the adoption of the new accounting standards and solvency regime, Fitch said.
Sustainability has also been moving up the regulatory agenda and the FSC has encouraged the development of green insurance products, it said.
Taiwan’s life insurers have begun to invest in renewable energy projects, and Fitch said it expects greater growth in green investments.
Climate-change risks are now on the regulator’s radar and will continue to grow in importance, it said.
‘SHORT-TERM ECONOMIC PAIN’: A military takeover would only temporarily weigh on wafer production on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, IC Insights said Taiwan has more chip manufacturing capacity than any other economy in the world, US-based market information advisory firm IC Insights said in a research paper last week, cautioning that the nation’s strength could prompt China to attempt to take over Taiwan. Taiwan commanded 21.4 percent of global installed IC capacity, ahead of South Korea’s 20.4 percent, Japan’s 15.8 percent and China’s 15.3 percent, North America’s 12.6 percent and Europe’s 5.7 percent, IC Insights said. Taiwan is one of two countries that uses 10-nanometer technology or better to produce wafers, holding 62.8 percent of global capacity, with South Korea holding the remaining 37.2
SELF-SUFFICIENCY: Alibaba is one of a number of Chinese firms that has answered Beijing’s call to invest in the development of cutting-edge technologies Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (阿里巴巴) yesterday unveiled a new server chip that is based on advanced 5-nanometer technology, marking a milestone in China’s pursuit of semiconductor self-sufficiency. The Chinese tech giant’s newest chip is based on micro-architecture provided by the SoftBank Group Corp-owned Arm Ltd, it said. Alibaba, which is holding its annual cloud summit in Hangzhou, China, said that the chip is to be used in its own data centers in the “near future” and would not, for the time being, be sold commercially. “Customizing our own server chips is consistent with our ongoing efforts toward boosting our computing capabilities with better
AGGRESSIVE STEP: With the new processors, Apple is aiming at the high-end chips Intel has provided for the MacBook Pro and other top-end Macs for about 15 years Apple Inc on Monday took the most aggressive step yet to strip Intel Corp chips from its computers, announcing more powerful homegrown Mac processors alongside a total revamp of its MacBook Pro laptop computers. The company showcased the chips at an event called “Unleashed,” which also included its latest audio products. The new components, called the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips, are 70 percent faster than its M1 predecessors, Apple said. It also unveiled a redesigned MacBook Pro, adding larger screens, MagSafe charging and better resolution. With the new processors and devices, Apple is aiming squarely at the high-end chips that Intel has
PRICE SPREAD: Oil trading under the Brent futures contract is giving the US a hefty edge in pricing, increasing the rush to secure cheap fuel as winter approaches Asian demand for US oil is rising as the energy crisis boosts prices for other crudes that are priced against the global Brent futures contract. China and other Asian buyers have been snapping up supertankers of US oil for delivery next month and seeking more for December, some traders have said. Most buyers are seeking US grades that had recently slumped to the lowest levels in more than a year, with an added incentive after Beijing awarded millions of tonnes of crude oil import quotas. A wide spread between Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil futures is accommodating higher US crude
RSS