Everything may not be coming up ros...

Everything may not be coming up rose to this time for some categories of individual life insurance, yet the prospects are smelling sweeter. After registering falling profits since 2000 the industry saw overall sales in this line rise earlier this year, with Limra International reporting a 10% increase in annualized premium in the first quarter of 2004 compared with a year earlier.

Moreover, the general improvement in the equities market--against the backdrop of a more stable economic environment--appears to be spurring a turnaround in sales of variable life insurance, which tracks closely with stock market turns Although annualized premium was down overall