PROFITS at insurer Munich Re plummeted 71 per cent during 2011 after a series of earthquakes and floods hammered the firm’s bottom line.
Preliminary figures show 2011 year-end net profit of €710m (£591m), down from €2.43bn in 2010.
The company has promised a return to its previous levels of profitability this year, emphasising that almost all of 2011’s earnings came from the final quarter.
Jörg Schneider, the firm’s finance chief, said 2011 was an exceptional year as “extreme burdens from natural catastrophes combined with the financial crisis” to rack up enormous losses.
“Given the huge strains these placed on results, it is a notable achievement that we still posted a profit of €0.71bn,” he said in a statement.
Munich Re took a €1.5bn hit following the Japanese earthquake and increased its claims estimate for the New Zealand earthquake to the same amount.
Tax clawbacks provided a €550m boost but the firm wrote down the value of Greek government debt holdings by €1.2bn.
