Arig, a regional professional reinsurance provider, yesterday reported a net profit of $5.2 million for the first half of the year as against a profit of $3.2 million for the comparable previous period.

Positive underwriting combined with higher investment earnings contributed to an improved performance, the firm said.

Technical result for the first two quarters was a profit of $10.3 million as against $9.2 million earlier. Investment income increased to $9.4 million at the half-year point from $8.9 million, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

Net profit for the second quarter alone was $3 million as against a loss of $2.4 million for the same period last year.

The group consolidated its Re-Takaful subsidiary participants' fund accounts for the first time to comply with new accounting standards.

Accordingly, all comparative figures have been restated.

Gross premiums written during the half-year remained flat at $224.3 million.

For the second quarter, gross premiums increased by 10.7 per cent to $44.2 million compared with $40 million for the corresponding quarter last year.

The non-life combined ratio stood at 85.9 per cent.

"Continued focus on maintaining strict underwriting discipline and a conservative investment strategy has helped us achieve consistent positive results in what remains to be a competitive environment," Arig chief executive Yassir Albaharna said.

Shareholders' equity stood at $233.9 million as on June 30 this year with a book value per share of $1.18, as against $235.2 million and a book value per share of $1.19 at the end of last year. – TradeArabia News Service