The cycle for auto insurance and reinsurance peaked last year.

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Its earnings typically swing in response to occasional catastrophes like hurricanes and earthquakes, or by the profit cycle (currently at low ebb) in the competitive auto insurance sector.

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The fuel economy mileage that appears on window stickers of new vehicles is calculated through a test that puts a vehicle through a standardized drive cycle designed by the EPA. The EPA then relies on auto manufacturers to conduct the test, and certifies that the vehicles have been tested.

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This assumption was based on the stable underpinnings of auto demand--cheap financing by car companies (and by home equity loans) and a customary replacement cycle of three years.

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