Great Eastern's Q3 net profit surges to S$195m from S$68.4m a year ago

GREAT Eastern Holding (GEH) said on Wednesday that its net profit for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016 surged to S$195 million, from S$68.4 million a year ago due to higher operating profits and favourable financial market conditions.

Its bottomline was underpinned by higher profits from its insurance business and shareholders' fund's investments.

Profit from insurance rose to S$171.1 million, from S$68.2 million previously mainly because of higher contribution from Investment-linked Fund in its Malaysia business. The insurance arm of OCBC Group saw a S$83.9 million contribution from non-participating fund in Q3, compared to a S$5.7 million loss a year ago.

Profits from shareholders' fund's investments stood at S$64.2 million, 66 per cent more than the S$38.6 million seen a year ago mainly because of higher net investment income and realised gains from sale of investments.

For the nine month period, the group's net profit was S$394.1 million, some 30 per cent lower than S$566.6 million achieved a year ago when GEH enjoyed a S$119.9 million gain on the disposal of its investment in New China Life Insurance Company Ltd. During the period, earnings were affected by a one-off loss of $18.7 million from disposal of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Great Eastern Life (Vietnam) Company Ltd.

Looking ahead, GEH is confident of its growth prospects in the markets that it operates in.

Clarification note: The previous version of the article said shareholders' fund stood at S$64.2 million, up 66 percent. GEH has clarified that it is the profits from shareholders' fund's investments.