German reinsurer Munich Re AG said Thursday that its net income surged to ¤644 million ($950.6 million) during the third quarter, lifted by a significant boost in investment revenue and fewer weather-related claims, according to AP. The company, based in Munich, said the July-September figure was dramatically better than the ¤3 million loss it reported a year earlier, and reflected the lack of major hurricane activity during the summer along with fewer catastrophe-related claims. Reinsurers sell backup coverage to other insurers, spreading risk so the system can handle large or widespread losses. Munich Re also operates Ergo, one of Germany"s biggest insurers, and Munich Reinsurance America Inc. «We have continued to gear our operations resolutely to profitability and are once again presenting good results,» Chief Financial Officer Joerg Schneider said in a statement. Gross written premiums, a measure of revenue, were 12 percent higher at nearly ¤10.4 billion compared with about ¤9.3 billion a year earlier. Investment returns, the primary driver behind its improved profit, skyrocketed to ¤2.2 billion from ¤662 million in the third quarter 2008. Looking ahead, the company said it was expecting a group profit of between ¤2.2 billion and ¤2.5 billion for 2009, which would be «at least ¤700 million more than in 2008.» From January through September, Munich Re"s net income was ¤1.8 billion compared with ¤1.4 billion a year earlier and gross written premiums rose 10 percent to ¤31 billion from ¤28.1 billion.
