Great Eastern Holdings, a member of the OCBC Group, reported earnings of $220.0 million for the 1QFY2022 ended March, 50% lower than earnings of $437.6 million.
The plunge in earnings was due to the lower valuation of investments arising from less favourable financial market conditions.
During the quarter, total weighted new sales (TWNS) increased by 32% y-o-y to $505.3 million with growth underpinned by higher sales in Singapore. The group’s Singapore operations continued its growth momentum driven by both the agency and bancassurance channels. This was offset by lower sales in Malaysia, which fell due to weaker economic sentiments.
In the 1QFY2022, Singapore’s TWNS increased by 56% y-o-y while Malaysia’s TWNS fell by 7% y-o-y.
New business embedded value in the 1QFY2022 fell 3% y-o-y to $191.3 million due to the lower contribution from Malaysia.
Meanwhile, operating profit from the group’s insurance business increased by 6% y-o-y to $191.4 million driven by the growth in its in-force business.
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However, non-operating profit plunged by 73% y-o-y to $58.9 million due to lower mark-to-market gains amid less favourable fixed income and equity market conditions in this quarter.
According to the group, its capital adequacy ratios (CAR) for its insurance subsidiaries for both Singapore and Malaysia remain “strong and well above their respective minimum regulatory levels”.
Group CEO Khor Hock Seng called the group’s 1QFY2022 performance “resilient”. This comes despite the challenging business environment and volatile capital and financial markets, he says.
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Looking ahead, Khor warned that the business landscape will remain “challenging” in the near-term.
“Nonetheless, it remains critical that we continue to strengthen our reach and harness customer insights to innovate product solutions and transform customer experience. With this strong customer focus, we will be able to offer product propositions that are targeted at addressing our customers’ evolving needs,” he says.
Shares in Great Eastern closed at $20.50 on April 27.
