Hannover Re reports “very good” first-half 2012 results

Hannover Re reported a “very good” result in the first half of 2012, citing an operating profit of EUR597.2 million, compared to EUR248.9 million over the first half of last year.

Group net income improved by a substantial 85.5% to EUR405.3 million (EUR218.5 million in the first half of 2011).

“The situation on the international reinsurance markets was broadly positive for non-life business,” Hannover Re CEO Ulrich Wallin said. “In the treaty renewals as of Apr. 1 in Japan, Korea and the United States, we actually achieved an even better outcome in some cases than in the round of renewals at the beginning of the year. As anticipated, the rate increases for property catastrophe business were again appreciable owing to the natural disasters in 2011.”

The major loss situation for Hannover Re was again moderate in the second quarter, the company reported. “The total net expenditure as at 30 June 2012 of EUR132.4 million (EUR625.2 million) was well below the loss expectancy.”

The largest single events in the second quarter for Hannover Re included earthquakes affecting a number of Italian provinces in the region of Emilia-Romagna on May 20 and 29. These resulted in a net loss expenditure of approximately EUR61 million for the company.