The Austrian insurance sector recorded a slight drop in premiums in Q2 2011 compared with the same period in 2010. Premiums written – excluding reinsurance – amounted to €3.95 billion. That corresponds to a drop of 2.87% compared with 2010. The technical account balance for the quarter improved by 56.85% year-on-year to €379 million. The result from ordinary activities for Q2 2011 reflected the positive development in the technical and capital investment figures. Compared with the previous year, it rose by 269% to €1,028 million. The news was disclosed in the Report on Q2 2011 Performance of Austrian Insurance Undertakings published today by the Financial Market Authority FMA.<\/p>
The individual balance sheet groups reported a wide range of different levels of performance. While premiums written rose in health insurance (+3.58%) and non-life and accident insurance (+4.56%), life assurance (including unit and index-linked life assurance) recorded a fall of 11.23%. The drop was primarily caused in unit and index-linked life assurance, which saw premiums written drop year-on-year by 34.4%. This was due to a change in the tax treatment for the single-premium business. This change means that, in the case of insurance policies with a term of fewer than 15 years for which regular, generally equal premium payments are agreed, the income resulting from the difference between the insurance premiums paid in and the insurance pay-out is fully liable to income tax. This change resulted in the single-premium business collapsing by almost 70%.<\/p>
The total assets managed by Austrian insurance undertakings as at the end of June 2011 amounted to €93.6 billion. This represents quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.65%. Hidden net reserves rose disproportionately compared with the first quarter – as a result of the falling interest rate – by 35.8%, reaching a value of €8.89 billion.<\/p>
The core share ratio (i.e. listed shares, share-based investment funds, share risk in mixed funds) barely changed in the second quarter of 2011 and registered 3.96%. The same also applied to the extended share ratio, which in addition to the core share ratio also includes non listed shares, structured debt securities without capital guarantee and structured loans without capital guarantee; its value hit 16.19%.<\/p>