Most new business written by publicly traded life insurers was priced with the same return on equity in 2003 as in 2002.[@@]
Andrew Kligerman, an analyst at UBS Securities, New York, gives that assessment in a discussion of a pricing survey conducted by Tillinghast Towers Perrin.
The survey, based on the newest available data, shows that the ROE on new business held steady at about 12% in 2002 and 2003.
Although the pricing ROEs have not declined, life insurers' ROEs are falling short of the insurers' pricing goals, Kligerman writes in a research note.
ROEs were 2 points under the 12% target for annuities, 1.4 points under the 12% target for life insurance, and 6 points under the 15% target for long term care insurance, Kligerman reports.