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Insurance

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Dollar up, oil down following bin Laden’s death

U.S. stock index futures opened higher Monday following confirmation from the White House that al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces, Reuters reported.

The dollar edged up as U.S. crude oil futures …

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Chrysler Group turns first profit since 2006

Chrysler Group LLC reported its first quarterly profit since 2006, an indication of the U.S. auto industry’s continuing recovery, CNNMoney.com reported.

The automaker, which went through a federal bailout and bankruptcy in 2009, earned $116 …

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A variable annuity has an investor constantly upset


Dear Mr. Berko:

I bought a $100,000 ING annuity in 2007, and it’s now down to $82,000. When I talk to my broker about this, he tries to get me to put more money in …

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Reynolds among five chosen for insurance ‘hall’


Five men will be inducted into the Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame in a ceremony at Drake University on May 18. The 2011 class consists of Charles Fischer, James Kirkpatrick, Thomas Petsche, Stanley J. Reynolds …

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Insurance agents get more lenient professional standard


An Iowa Supreme Court ruling that set a stricter standard for insurance agents’ professional responsibilities to their clients was recently nullified by the Legislature.

In an omnibus insurance bill signed by Gov. Terry Branstad on …

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Iowa among 10 states investigating potential life insurance tardiness

Iowa is among 10 states investigating whether some of America’s largest life insurers are failing to ensure that they pay out on policies of deceased customers, a state insurance division spokesman confirmed this morning. As …

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West Bancorporation reports increase in first-quarter income

West Bancorporation Inc., parent company of West Bank, reported a 42.9 percent increase in 2011 first-quarter net income.

First-quarter net income was $3.96 million, compared with $2.77 million in the first quarter of 2010. West …

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French reinsurer to purchase Transamerica Reinsurance

French reinsurer SCOR S.E. will to pay $913 million for most of Dutch insurer AEGON N.V.’s Transamerica Reinsurance operations, the companies announced. The transaction will make SCOR the second largest life reinsurer in the United …

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Storm losses to impact EMC earnings

EMC Insurance Group Inc. on Wednesday announced that its first-quarter operating results, which it will release May 10, will be negatively affected by a high level of catastrophe and storm losses and a significant decline …

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Report: State pension gaps growing

States are short $1.26 trillion in paying for public employee pensions and other retirement benefits, a gap that grew 26 percent in one year and will take many more years to wipe out, Reuters reported.…