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Zurich Financial Services reports 2009 Q1 net income decreases 75% from 2008 Q1


May 7, 2009   by Canadian Underwriter


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Zurich Financial Services Limited reported a 2009 Q1 profit of US$362 million, a decrease of 75% over the same period last year.
The company’s general insurance segment reported gross written premiums and policy fees of US$9.8 billion, down 12% or 3% in local currencies, and a combined ratio of 95.8%
“General Insurance continued to show resilience across its well-diversified book of business, as a deliberate and prudent approach to rates and expense management maintained profitability despite the ongoing negative economic environment,” Zurich said in a press release. “Business operating profit decreased 25%, to US$900 million, driven by a lower underwriting performance due to the impact of recessionary forces on business volumes and challenging market conditions.
“Reductions in investment income equally contributed to the lower result.”
Zurich noted that its 2009 Q1 combined ratio increased by 1.2 percentage points over that of 2008 Q1, mainly reflecting continued investments in operational transformation, changes in business mix and integration costs associated with the newly acquired businesses in Brazil and Turkey.
In the North America commercial segment, “the ability to drive rates and capitalize on growth opportunities in targeted market segments helped to partially mitigate the volume impact from downward economic pressures,” the company said.


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