Generali boosted by Central European expansion

Strong growth in the non-life account followed the inclusion of Ceska Pojistovna and a rise of 143% in premiums from the CEE

Italy’s largest insurer Assicurazioni Generali Group reported a 3.9% rise in gross premium income for 2008, with life business rising by 3.2% to €46.8bn and non-life business growing by 5.5% to €22bn. The exceptional economic conditions caused net profits to plummet by 71% from €2.92bn in 2007 to €861mn, caused by impairments to market values of €5bn.