Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. (MSI) maintains a solid business franchise, with the third-largest market share among Japanese domestic non-life insurers. MSI's strong market position is backed by a well-recognized brand name, and its relationship with the Mitsui and Sumitomo groups. Standard&Poor's expects that the company will continue to maintain and enhance its business franchise and market share, by taking advantage of its extensive distribution networks and strong brand name. In fiscal 2002 (ended March 31, 2003), MSI's underwriting performance was very good, with a combined ratio (loss ratio and expense ratio) of 92.5% (balance ratio of 7.5%). The strong performance resulted from an improvement in loss ratio from 57.8% to 57.2% and a decline in the expense
