SCOR reported third quarter net income of EUR94 million ($139.9 million at current exchange rate), a 147 percent increase over net income of EUR38 million ($56.6 million) for the period last year.
The French reinsurer said it is benefiting from an investment portfolio mainly oriented toward government bonds and investment grade corporate bonds.
Gross written premiums for the company climbed to EUR1.62 billion ($2.4 billion) in the quarter from 2008 third-quarter gross written premiums of EUR1.57 billion ($2.3 billion). But non-life gross written premiums dipped to EUR831 million ($1.2 billion) from EUR884 million ($1.3 billion) a year ago.
The third-quarter non-life combined ratio improved to 97.3 from 100.8 in the 2008 third quarter.
Investment income in the quarter climbed to EUR176 million ($262 million) compared to 2008 third-quarter investment income of EUR97 million ($144.4 million).
For the first nine months, SCOR reported net income of EUR278 million ($413.9 million), down slightly from 2008 nine-month net income of EUR280 million ($416.9 million). The company said steady growth in its business units and a "cautious asset management strategy" drove its results.
Gross written premiums for the first nine months of 2009 were EUR4.9 billion ($7.3 billion) compared to EUR4.3 billion ($6.4 billion) in 2008. Non-life gross written premiums for this period were EUR2.5 billion ($3.7 billion), up from EUR2.4 billion ($3.6 billion) a year ago.
The non-life combined ratio for the first nine months of 2009 improved to 97.4 from 99.2 a year ago, which the company said was in line with its performance target.
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