Japan insurance merger scrapped

TOKYO: Tokio Marine & Fire Insurance Co, Japan's largest non- life insurer, and Asahi Mutual Life Insurance Co said on Thursday they had scrapped a merger of Asahi and Tokio Marine's life insurance business due in March 2003.

The two companies said at a news conference that they had failed to reach an agreement on the details of the merger plan announced in November.

The original plan was for Asahi Life, Japan's fifth largest life insurer, to sell its business section in charge of selling new policies to Tokio Marine.

Asahi Life and Tokio Marine said they could not reach agreement on channels for new policy sales and whether to reduce Asahi Life's sales staff. -- Reuters