Italian insurer Generali’s profit soars
Italian insurer Generali said on Thursday its first half net profit soared 73.2 percent to 872.9 million euros (1.15 billion dollars) thanks to strong life insurance sales. Profits in its life insurance business grew 23.5 percent to 1.6 billion euros, which Generali in a statement called “the best half-year figure for the past three years.” Cost containment and improving margins in financial operations also contributed to the result, Generali added. The profit however was lower than expected by analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires,... Lire la suite
German insurer Allianz says net profit plunged in Q2
The German insurance giant Allianz said on Friday that its second-quarter net profit plunged by 45.6 percent from the same period a year earlier to 1.02 billion euros (1.34 billion dollars). The quarter rounded out a first half that was “marked by exceptionally high natural catastrophe losses,” a statement quoted chief executive Michael Diekmann as saying. The group said the fall also stemmed from “a low level of harvesting” compared with the same period a year earlier, when Allianz booked a high level of gains on investments... Lire la suite
AIG reports 2.66-billion-dollar quarterly loss
Ailing US insurance giant AIG on Friday said it swung to a 2.66-billion-dollar loss in the second quarter, hurt mostly by the impending sale of a key foreign business unit. American International Group, which was rescued from collapse by the government during the financial crisis, said the loss was primarily due to a 3.3-billion dollar “non-cash goodwill impairment charge” linked to the sale of Alico, AIG’s second-largest foreign life-insurance business. AIG had agreed to sell Alico to MetLife, the largest US life insurer, for... Lire la suite
Insurer Zurich posts 76-percent profit jump in first quarter
Swiss insurer Zurich Financial Services said on Thursday that its first-quarter net profits soared 76 percent to 935 million dollars (729 million euros), despite high claims over the earthquake in Chile. The earnings marked a sharp improvement from profits of 532 million dollars 12 months ago, and beat analysts’ forecasts of 860 million dollars, according to a poll conducted by economics newswire AWP. “Our general insurance business successfully maintained its focus on protecting profit margins, managing to absorb both the significant... Lire la suite
Insurer Aviva says profits climb in first half
British insurer Aviva revealed on Thursday that first-half profit jumped 21 percent, lifted by rising sales in Asia and Europe, sending its share price rocketing by more than eight percent. Aviva, Britain’s second largest insurer after Prudential, said operating profit rose 21 percent to 1.27 billion pounds (1.53 billion euros, 2.0 billion dollars) in the six months to June, compared with the same part of last year. That beat market expectations of 1.15 billion, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Long-term savings new business sales, meanwhile,... Lire la suite











