U.S. property/casualty reinsurers post positive results in first quarter: RAA

The U.S. reinsurance sector posted positive underwriting results in the first quarter of 2012, according to data released Wednesday by the Reinsurance Assn. of America.

A group of 19 U.S. property/casualty reinsurers surveyed by the Washington-based RAA posted a combined $7.67 billion in net written premium for the first three months of 2012, compared with the $7.10 billion for the same quarter last year.

Net income was $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared with a $100 million net loss in the same quarter last year.

The group’s combined ratio showed dramatic improvement over the prior year at 95.6% compared with the 129.3% reported for the first quarter of 2011.

Investment income for the industry was essentially unchanged, totaling $2.11 billion for the quarter, as opposed to $2.19 billion in 2011.