Japan Quake May Lift Reinsurers Like Katrina, Investors Say

Shareholders of reinsurers still counting losses from the biggest Japanese earthquake on record are betting on a share rebound comparable to the one that followed Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Munich Re, the world’s biggest reinsurer, climbed about 25 percent in the six months following the storm that devastated New Orleans, while Swiss Reinsurance Co., the world’s second largest, rose 14 percent. Amlin Plc, the biggest Lloyd’s of London insurer, advanced 49 percent.