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, who had forecast 944 million euros. Generali’s damage insurance business shrank 6.6 percent to 663 million euros, mostly because of claims following the earthquake in Chile and the Xynthia storm that hit Europe earlier this year. The company confirmed it expected net profits to grow for the full-year.
Milan, Aug 5, 2010 (AFP)
