Zurich Insurance has had a better first half 2018 than expected. The comparison with the previous year however doesn’t tell the whole story.
Zurich Insurance had a first-half profit of $1.79 billion, up almost a fifth from the previous year, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
Last year’s first-half figures were affected by charges relating to the Ogden discount rate change. The profit of Zurich Insurance was impaired to the tune of $290 million for that period.
The first half of 2018 still was better than analysts had forecast. They on average expected a profit of $1.75 billion.
On Track to Deliver
«I’m extremely pleased with our continued progress. Our businesses are showing great resilience and improved profitability despite challenging market conditions,» said CEO Mario Greco. «At the midpoint of our three-year plan, we stand well on track to achieve all indicated targets by the end of 2019.»
Zurich aims to have a return on equity relating to operating profit of more than 12 percent. In the first half, the company achieved a figure of 12.3 percent.
The company also plans to reduce costs by $1.5 billion from the basis of 2015 and has now achieved cost savings of $900 million.
