Berkley Corp. first quarter net income up 45.5% over last year

W.R. Berkley Corp. posted $169.8 million in net income for the first quarter of 2014, an increase of 45.5% from the first quarter of last year.

Net written premiums increased 10.8% to $1.53 billion.

The company's combined ratio improved to 93.9% from 94.7% in the same period a year earlier.

“We had an excellent first quarter,” said Berkley Chairman and CEO William R. Berkley in a statement. “Underwriting results showed substantial improvement as almost every area of the domestic business produced improved margins. We expect these improvements to be maintained over the balance of the year as the efforts to improve pricing and control costs are reflected in our financial statements.”

“Price increases are still obtainable in most lines of business,” he added.