View this article online: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/international/2000/09/13/10508.htm
Swiss Re posted a surprising 28 percent gain in net profits of SwFr 3.26 billion ($1.85 billion) for the 1st half of the year compared to SwFr 2.56 billion ($1.45 billion) in 1999.
Although gross premiums written did rise by 5 percent for the period, the income gain was primarily due to realized capital gains on sales of assets, as Swiss Re sold large amounts of its equity holdings and reinvested the funds in fixed-income securities.
As previously announced Swiss Re has embarked on a cost cutting campaign that aims to reduce costs and catastrophe exposures by 20 percent over the next two years. It hopes to further improve its combined ratio, which fell to 111 percent in the first half from 112 the year before.