Life sales off in August

Applications for individually underwritten life insurance were down by 3.7 percent in North America for the month of August, according to the MIB Life Index, a monthly measure of such activity. U.S. activity declined 4.8 percent yearover- year; Canadian applications remained steady from July and was up 4.1 percent year-over-year.

The 60-plus age group remained on the upswing, up 1.3 percent vs. August 2006, marking the fifth consecutive month of growth in that age group. The 44-and-under age group was off 6.2 percent, and the 45-to-59 group was down 4.1 percent. Year-to-date activity is down 3.6 percent in the United States.