Swiss Re anticipates $200-million loss resulting from oil rig explosion

Swiss Re anticipates $200-million worth of pre-tax losses arising from the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
In its 2010 Q1 financial statements, the reinsurer said it expects the total insured market loss from this event to be in the range of $1.5 billion to $3.5 billion.
As for its 2010 Q1 results, Swiss Re reported a quarterly profit of $158 million, marking an increase from its net income of $130 million in 2009 Q1.
The reinsurer’s property and casualty unit reported a combined ratio of 109.4% during the quarter, a deterioration from 2009 Q1’s combined ratio of 90.2%.
The property and casualty unit reported an operating income of $259 million, a decrease of 69% compared to the $846 million reported in 2009 Q1.
Swiss Re cites the high level of natural catastrophes in the quarter, including estimated claims of $500 million from the Chilean earthquake and $100 million from the European winter storm Xynthia.
“In the first quarter of 2010, we continued to deliver strong underlying performance, even though the result was [affected] by high natural catastrophe losses, mainly from the earthquake in Chile and European winter storm Xynthia,” said Stephan Lippe, Swiss Re’s CEO.