Munich Re profits soar despite Hurricane Ian, Ukraine war

FRANKFURT: German reinsurance giant Munich Re said Thursday that it booked a better-than-expected profit in 2022, despite costly claims for natural disasters and the war in Ukraine.

The group, which covers insurance firms against their risks, lifted its net profit more than 16 percent year-on-year to 3.4 billion euros ($3.6 billion), beating its own forecast of 3.3 billion euros.

“Munich Re absorbed the crises of 2022 well,” CEO Joachim Wenning said in a statement.

Premium takings, which are equivalent to revenues in the insurance sector, climbed 12.7 percent to 67 billion euros, helped by higher prices and new business in Europe, Asia and Australia.

Claims for major losses cost the group almost 4.2 billion euros in 2022. Hurricane Ian was the most expensive natural disaster, costing around 1.6 billion euros after it pummelled the Caribbean and southeast United States last autumn. Russia’s war in Ukraine led to claims totalling 475 million euros.

Munich Re said it would propose to shareholders an increased dividend of 11.60 euros per share for 2022. It also plans to buy back shares for a total value of up to one billion euros, another way to reward shareholders.

Looking ahead, Munich Re said it expected an even higher net profit this year, of 4.0 billion euros.

It warned however that its forecast faced “considerable uncertainty” because of the war in Ukraine and market volatility.