Qatar Insurance Group has posted a net profit of US$137 million for the first nine months of 2019, up from US$130 million during the same period last year.
In a statement, the MENA-focused insurance group also reported a 3% year-on-year improvement in gross written premiums, to US$.271 million for the first three quarters of 2019, up from US$2.263 billion last year.
Meanwhile, the group’s net underwriting result improved by 11% to US$115 million, up from US$104 million last year. QIC Group reported a combined ratio of 101.5% for the first nine months of 2019, compared with 102% in the previous year, the statement said. Excluding the impact of reserve developments as a result of changes to the Ogden discount rate in the UK, the underlying combined ratio for the first nine months of 2019 was 99.3%.
“We continue to execute on our strategic shift towards lower volatility segments of the international markets. QIC’s stable underwriting profitability testifies to the attractive economics of this business, with relatively stable and predictable margins,” said Khalifa Abdulla Turki Al Subaey, group president & CEO of QIC Group.
“The group’s near-term outlook remains cautiously optimistic. Our exposure to the geopolitical situation in the Middle East and the vagaries of global re/insurance pricing is relatively moderate,” he continued. “As QIC does not underwrite the market but focuses on bespoke, innovative, and expertise-based transactions we continue to be shielded from a number of major risk scenarios presented by the political and economic environment.”
