Zurich Financial Services said profits for its general insurance business for the year ending 31 December 2003 rose 333% compared with 2002, reaching $1.8bn.
Gross written premiums for its general insurance operations grew 22% from $29.8bn to $36.2bn. The combined ratio for the sector improved 5.6 percentage points to 97.9%, said the company.
Zurich Financial Services said the improvements in its performance in the general insurance sector were due to better claims handling, improved underwriting and more disciplined pricing against a background of generally firm rates in the company's key markets.
For the company as a whole, gross written premiums increased by 18%, reaching $48.9bn for 2003, compared with $41.4bn for the previous year.
Net income for the group rose from a loss of $3.3bn for 2002, to a profit of $2.1bn.
