Swiss Life confirms 2017 targets as fee income, premiums rise

[ZURICH] Swiss Life confirmed its 2017 financial targets as it took in more premiums in its insurance business and generated more income from asset management in the first nine months.

Switzerland's biggest life insurer said group-wide premiums rose 3 per cent to 13.81 billion Swiss francs (S$18.83 billion), compared to 13.36 billion francs the year before. Fee and commission income rose 6 per cent to 1.04 billion francs.

"With the results of the first three quarters we continue to be confident that we will meet our financial targets for 2017," chief executive Patrick Frost said in a statement on Wednesday.

Swiss Life has focused on trimming costs and raising third-party asset management and investment income to offset sluggishness in its core life insurance business.

Swiss Life - whose main markets include Switzerland, France and Germany - has like other insurers been squeezed by low and negative interest rates.

In August, the group posted a larger-than-expected rise in half-year profit as growing real estate holdings helped increase income.

It does not give profit figures in its nine-month interim statement.

REUTERS