It has more than mn customers in Europe, the US, Canada, Latin America, Asia and Australia, including individuals, families, Links of London businesses, large corporations, institutions and governments. ING is one of the largest financial institutions worldwide. Corporate Highlights In July , ING became the second largest player in Latin America’s pension fund and retirement businesses, after buying Spanish bank Santander’s pension businesses in Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Uruguay for EUR.bn. ING’s insurance business overall lost EURmn in Q due to bad investments. While the banking arm Links of London The Man On The Moon Charm a pretax profit of around EURmn, benefiting from the large numbers of investors keeping their money in cash while ING pays low interest, provisions for bad loans rose. Overall insurance sales fell by . yoy. The value of new business was down . ING blamed a mix of lower sales and margin pressure. ING reported that underlying pretax profits from its Latin American life insurance business rose EURmn in Q, up yoy, or . excluding currency effects. The insurer attributed results to improved equity market returns, lower integration and operating costs and improved fee income, although higher property and casualty claims in Brazil and the adverse impact of inflation in Chile weighed on results, ING’s earnings release said. Gross premium income from ING’s Latin American life units fell Links of London Duck Charm EURmn due to a decline in annuity sales in Chile, with operating expenses falling to EURmn thanks to cost cutting expenses. Insurance Europe premium income in was EUR.bn, down . New premiums were valued at EURmn, down from EURmn in . The company said its Insurance America division was hit by poor US results, which were affected by the downturn in markets. Premium income for the division fell . from to EUR.bn while the value of new life business there rose from EURmn to EURmn. The company’s review of operations for the year in Asia Pacific said that despite lower sales, Insurance Links of London Power Walk Charm Pacific maintained or improved market position. It said declining equity markets and weak economic conditions eroded demand for investmentlinked products.
The shorter sailing times from China to Rijeka, compared with China to Rotterdam or China to Hamburg, Links of London the Croatian port a viable alternative to the more established northern European ports. The construction of the new terminal is part of a wider push to increase Rijeka's competitiveness through port modernisation and expansion. The USmn Rijeka Gateway Project, funded by a World Bank loan and due to be completed in December , aims to construct a new wharf and a multipurpose terminal, as well as a road to link the port with the Rijeka roundabout. The Rijeka Gateway Project Links of London Back to School Chubby Blue Pencil Charm, also funded by a World Bank loan, includes plans to build a mlong terminal with an annual capacity of ,TEUs. Once this improved infrastructure is in place, BMI believes Rijeka will become an attractive option to shipping lines. Rijeka suffered doubledigit falls in cargo volumes and container throughput in . Although the worst of the recession in Croatia is over, the operating environment is still difficult within the ports and shipping sector. Nevertheless, BMI believes cargo volumes will exceed the general Croatian economic growth rate because of the greater dynamism in regional trade, which depends not just on Croatia but on neighbouring landlocked countries. In we expect a yearonyear throughput increase of . bringing the port's tonnage throughput forecast for the year to .mn tonnes. Links of London Back to School Chubby Black Pencil Charm expect Rijeka to recover its predownturn throughput volume in and . Although in August we were doubtful that the Croatian port of Plo?e could challenge its Adriatic neighbours for the role of premier entry point for central European markets, we believed the port's new development would help it take advantage of growing Croatian trade. The first phase of a new container terminal at the port of Plo?e was ceremoniously opened in August by Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor Links of London Jumbo Charm Speaker of Parliament Luka Bebic. This phase of the new terminal, which will have a capacity of ,TEUs a year, cost US.mn, of which the Croatian government contributed US.mn. It is part of a larger port development project that will cost US.mn once completed.
The chemicals industry is highly cyclical. Strong domestic or regional demand is expected to require larger volumes Links of London either domestically produced or imported olefins ethylene, propylene, polyolefins PE, PP or downstream products Trends in enduser industries. Strong demand for motor vehicles, construction materials, packaging products and pharmaceuticals imply rising demand for basic chemicals Governmentindustry projections Thirdparty forecasts from national and international industry trade associations etc. Cross Checks Whenever possible, we compare government andor third party agency projections with the reported spending and capacity expansion plans of the companies operating in each individual country. Where there are discrepancies, we use companyspecific data, Links of London Dome Jade Charm physical spending patterns ultimately determine capacity and supply capability. Similarly, we compare capacity expansion plans and demand projections to check the chemicals balance of each country. Where the data suggest imports or exports, we check that necessary capacity exists or that the required investment in infrastructure is taking place. Business Environment Ratings BMI’s Petrochemicals Business Environment Rating has three objectives. First, we have defined the risks rated in order to accurately capture the operational dangers to companies operating in this industry globally. Second, we Links of London Dress Charm, where possible, identified objective indicators. Finally, we have used BMI’s proprietary Country Risk Ratings CRR in a nuanced manner in order to ensure that only the aspects most relevant to the industry have been included. Overall, the ratings system which integrates with those of all industries covered by BMI offers an industryleading insight into the prospectsrisks for companies across the globe. Conceptually, the ratings system divides into two distinct areas, with the indicators included in each area stated below Limits Of Potential Returns Evaluation of sector’s size and growth potential in each state, and also Links of London Duck Charm industrystate characteristics that may inhibit its development. Risks To Realisation Of Returns Evaluation of industryspecific dangers and those emanating from the state’s politicaleconomic profile that call into question the likelihood of anticipated returns being realised over the assessed time period.
In contrast, for MetLife, part of ALICO’s attraction is the minimal business overlap. Integration of the two companies is expected Links of London cost around USmn over the next . years. Savings from amalgamation of systems and so on should amount to only USmn a year. For all its strengths in Japan and Brazil where MetLife has BRLbn in inforce business, corporate clients and .mn customers, MetLife has up to now been overwhelmingly a US company that focuses on life insurance, variable products and employee benefits. In distributing its products, it has tended to use professional agents, employers Links of London Z Charm third party relationships. In the year to September MetLife reported revenues from premiums plus universal life and investment product policy fees of US,mn. Of this, US,mn was written in the US. In terms of revenues from premiums and other considerations, ALICO is about a third of the size of MetLife. However, and despite a global headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, ALICO’s business is wholly outside Links of London y Charm US. We estimate that, once it is combined with ALICO, a little over onethird of MetLife’s business will be derived from outside the US, as the following table shows. Both companies have a presence in Japan, although ALICO’s business is much larger than that of MetLife. MetLife’s Latin American operations are of significantly greater size than those of ALICO. However, it has no presence in Central and Eastern Europe except for a minor subsidiary in Poland or the Middle East. The two companies are also very different in terms of the products that they tend to focus on and the distribution Links of London X Charm that they favour. Following the acquisition, MetLife will truly be one of the world’s leading global life insurance companies. In terms of inforce business, the combined insurer will be number one in the US, Mexico, Chile and Russia. It will be number two in Japan, and the secondlargest independent insurer in Brazil.
Threats Despite a steady, albeit modest rate of job creation, unemployment remains high in relation to growth, threatening overall productivity. Income inequality Links of London amongst the highest in Latin America, and if Chile is to sustain its recovery in the long term, social progress will be essential. Chile Business Environment SWOT Strengths Chile’s open economy, combined with its bilateral, regional and multilateral trade agreements, has meant a steady increase in foreign trade and in the country’s international competitiveness. Chile offers foreign investors some of the world’s most competitive Links of London Back To School Chubby Black Pencil Charm costs. Privatisation and deregulation have created sophisticated public utility and telecommunications industries, while corporate taxes and labour costs are moderately low. Weaknesses The lack of a dynamic tertiary sector, largely as a result of overdependence on primary export industries, amplifies Chile’s vulnerability to external shocks. Heavy dependence on imported natural gas leaves the economy vulnerable to supply shortages and potential power stoppages. Opportunities There is government support for foreign investors through three investment mechanisms which guarantee the rights of both the state and the investor during the implementation of a project. Destruction wrought by the earthquake of February will open significant new areas for foreign investment as the government Links of London Back to School Chubby Blue Pencil Charm to share the cost of reconstruction with the private sector. Threats Social unrest remains a threat as long as the pace of poverty and inequality reduction fails to match the pace of economic growth. We are concerned that despite recent efforts, corruption is a growing problem. Commercial Banking Business Environment Rating Methodology Since Q, we have described numerically the banking business environment for each of the countries surveyed by BMI. We do this through our Commercial Banking Business Environment Rating CBBER, a measure that ensures we capture the latest quantitative information available. It also ensures consistency across all countries and between the Links of London Back to School Chubby Red Pencil Charm to the CBBER and the Insurance Business Environment Rating, which is likewise now a feature of our insurance reports.
BMI, therefore, forecasts a slowdown in production growth to an average of yoy between and . Quick recovery Links of London has meant that most carmakers have already begun utilising more capacity. But with fewer investments in the pipeline, we fear that our earlier forecast of an yoy growth becomes unattainable. We currently forecast total production reaching nearly , units by the end of , meaning that levels are unlikely to get anywhere nearer those in Brazil and Mexico. In the first nine months of , sales have risen an impressive yoy, to , units. Although the impact of low effects from last year's new car Links of London W Charm cannot be denied, there is a fear that much of the uptick in demand has been a result of consumers bringing forward their car purchases to hedge against inflation. High inflation has also meant that the real savings rate for consumers has turned negative, leaving little incentive for households to save. Meanwhile, there is little possibility that the government's zero km plan has bolstered the market. Although the scheme's relaunch increased the number of models eligible for cheap financing from to , consumers have reportedly not fully benefitted from the scheme, thanks its slow bureaucratic process. Links of London V Charm, the insecurity brought about by rising inflation and the unsupportive car plan further bolstered used car sales which rose to , units during the five months, up a significant . compared with the same period last year. Much of this growth came about owing to increased demand for vehicles less than four years old, which are typically around a third cheaper than new entrylevel vehicles eligible for purchase under the zero km plan. A bigger problem is that increased demand could force up the price of secondhand cars, further aggravating the inflationary forces in the economy. However, on the back of its expectations Links of London U Charm similar demand conditions for the remainder of the year, the country's Automobile Chamber of commerce CCC forecasts the used car market to reach sales of close to .mn vehicles by the end of , having more than recovered from the .mn units purchased in and the .mn cars shifted in .