Important reminder for insurance professionals in British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba.

The following professionals need to have all of their continuing education credits in place by May 31, 2009:

• General Insurance Agents and Life and A&S Agents in Manitoba
• Insurance Adjusters in Alberta
• General Insurance Agents, Adjusters, and Life and A&S Agents in British Columbia

While there is still time to get all of your required credits in place, we recommend beating the deadline by completing your courses now.

ILScorp has hundreds of hours of accredited courses online.

Browse through our catalog to find something that is interesting and relevant to you and your job role and get started with just a couple of clicks of the mouse. Visit www.ilscorp.com today.

Todd Hochban from West Coast Training is holding several in-person courses in Vancouver for insurance professionals at all levels. Below are the details:

CAIB IV June 15 - 19, 2009
Examination Registration Deadline: June 12
Examination Date: July 15

CAIB III June 22 - 26, 2009
Examination Registration Deadline: June 12
Examination Date: July 15

CAIB II August 24 - 28, 2009
Examination Registration Deadline: August 14
Examination Date: Sept. 16

For more information on these courses or to register, visit West Coast Training.

Can't attend? Don't forget ILScorp offers online CAIB preparation courses, available from anywhere, at any time. Check out our CAIB Preparation Courses page for more information.

Industry Briefs

Manulife loses nearly $1.1 billion in first quarter, takes hit on investments

Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC), Canada's largest insurance company, posted a net loss of nearly $1.1 billion for the first quarter, compared with net profit of $869 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Manulife said the results reflected "the impact of the global economy on equity markets, other asset values and sales, in the first quarter of 2008."

Company shares rose 40 cents to $23.14 on the TSX.
--

Great West Lifeco profit plunges in Q1 and premiums dry up, investments sour

Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSX:GWO) net income attributable to common shareholders fell to $326 million, down 34 per cent from $493 million in 2008 or down 50 per cent from $654 million if discontinued operations are included.

Basic earnings per share fell to 34.5 cents from 73.2 cents in the first quarter of 2008. Total premiums and deposits received by the group fell by 51 per cent to $14.56 billion, from $29.45 billion.


--
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reports a US$1.5B Q1 loss

Warren Buffett's company reported a US$1.5-billion first-quarter loss as it wrote down its ConocoPhillips investment and unrealized derivative losses helped drag Berkshire Hathaway's results below last year's roughly $900-million profit.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said it recorded a loss of $990 per share in this year's quarter. In the same period a year earlier, the Omaha-based company reported $607 net income per class A share.
Buffett already acknowledged making a major mistake by buying a large amount of ConocoPhillips stock when oil and gas prices were near their peak last year.

Berkshire says it sold 13.7 million of its 79.9 million shares of ConocoPhillips during the first quarter to generate a loss that can offset past capital gains taxes.

--

U.S. government sets June 8 deadline for banks' capital plan

The biggest U.S. banks that are found to need more capital after government stress tests will have one month to come up with a plan to raise the additional resources.

The U.S. government says that after the results of the stress tests are released Thursday, the banks found to need more capital will have until June 8 to get a plan approved by their regulators.

The deadline was included in a joint statement released by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke and Sheila Bair, head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

--
Industry Briefs courtesy of The Canadian Press.

Looking for even more industry news? Check out ILSTV today.