Germany’s Munich Re has reported a marked rise in second-quarter profit. The world’s largest reinsurer said the strong result was due to its thriving investment business and a lower rate of major losses globally.
Munich Re announced Thursday it posted a bottom-line profit of 1.1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) for the second quarter of 2015, up from just 762 million in the same period a year earlier and thus marking a 41 percent rise year-on-year.
“We look back on a very successful second quarter,” CEO Nikolaus von Bomhard said in a statement. “Despite a persistently uncertain environment, including ongoing competition in reinsurance, the profitability of our core business remains remarkable.”
The company pointed to a below-average incidence of major losses in the period under review, mentioning that losses incurred through natural disasters amounted to just 21 million euros, while man-made major losses totaled 186 million euros.
Rosy outlook
Munich Re noted that the largest single man-made loss for the company came in at 50 million euros from a fire at a warehouse in South Korea.
The Munich-based firm reported the group’s investment result showed a year-on-year improvement of 6.5 percent to total 2.5 billion euros.
Based on the solid second-quarter result, Munich Re said it was now aiming for a full-year net profit of at least 3 billion euros. It thus raised its previously stated range of earnings between 2.5 billion and 3 billion euros for 2015.
