PROFITS RISE AT LEADING CROATIAN INSURER

Croatia Osiguranje has recorded a full-year profit of HRK126m ($27.4m) for 2007, up 10% year on year, on revenues of HRK4.2bn, up 7%. The insurer said that it planned new acquisitions in the region, including Albanian insurer Insig, an insurer in Slovenia and one of the leading players in the Macedonian market. Croatia-Osiguranje, which is 80% state-owned, claimed a 34% market share in its home market. The government has said that it planned to privatise the insurer relatively soon, but has given no precise timeframe.