Non-life insurance earnings jump

Non-life insurance premiums totalled nearly VND3.25 trillion (US$154.7 million) in the first two months of the year, an increase of 29.7 per cent over the same period in 2010, according to the Insurance Supervisory Authority of the Ministry of Finance.

“A growth rate of 22-25 per cent is the target set for the non-life insurance market this year,” said Association of Vietnamese Insurers vice president Tran Vinh Duc.

PetroVietnam Insurance moved into first place, with VND842.6 billion ($40.12 million) in revenue and occupying 26 per cent of the market share. Last year’s industry leader, Bao Viet Insurance, followed with earnings of VND709.9 billion ($33.8 million), accounting for 22 per cent of the market share.

Bao Minh Insurance and Petrolimex Insurance, with two-month earnings of VND532.2 billion ($25.34 million) and VND249.3 billion ($11.87 million), respectively, remained in third and fourth place.

PetroVietnam was able to claim the top spot by becoming the only domestic insurer dealing in energy reinsurance contracts in London and has continued to expand into such foreign markets as Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Russia, Algeria, Venezuela and Cuba. It also won the $27 million contract insuring the Hai Thach and Moc Tinh mine projects operated by the Bien Dong Petroleum Operation Co.

Foreign insurers, although claiming less than 10 per cent of the reinsurance market share, saw the fastest growth in the first two months of the year, compared to the same period in 2010.

Groupama Insurance saw earnings of VND6 billion ($285,700) during the period, an increase of 170 per cent, while ACE Insurance Co Ltd earned VND9.3 billion, over double its earnings in the same period last year. Fubon Insurance Co Ltd earned VND12.4 billion, an increase of 88.3 per cent, while Cathay Non-Life Insurance, which only began operations in October of last year, earned VND365.4 million in the first two months of 2011.

Under the amended Law on the Insurance Business to take effect on July 1, insurers will be required to bid on insurance contracts, a factor likely to lead to more intense competition and tighter profit margins for the industry. — VNS

Tags: non-life insurance market