Japan Disaster Update: Beware of Global Insurance Stocks

The catastrophe-modeling company AIR Worldwide Corp . has estimated that insurance company losses from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami could reach $35 billion. That has insurance analysts feeling bullish about insurance stocks: In their view, losses are good because it enables the insurers to ratchet up their premiums. Personally, I don't see it that way. While I like life-insurance and domestic-insurance companies as investments for ordinary investors, I think the big-ticket insurance market is too opaque, too insider dominated, and much too unlikely to deliver decent returns to its outside shareholders. In short, here in the aftermath of the deadly Japan disaster , investors need to beware of global insurance stocks. To understand the troubles at hand, please read on...