SCOR closed 2022 "in red" due to NatCat claims, war & macroeconomic tensions

8 March 2023 —
French reinsurer SCOR posted gross written premiums of EUR 19.73 billion in 2022, up by 4.9% compared with 2021, while in terms of profitability, it reported a net loss of EUR -301 million, compared with EUR 456 million net income in 2021.

According to the statement published on reinsurer's website, 2022 was the sixth consecutive year marked by a high frequency of natural catastrophes and other weather-related events, including floods in Australia, Hurricane Ian in the U.S., hailstorms in France and one of the worst droughts in Brazilian history.

"The beginning of the year was also marked by the continuation of the global pandemic as well as the start of the war in Ukraine, the largest military conflict Europe has seen in decades. On the macroeconomic front, strong inflationary pressures in Europe and the United States led central banks to raise interest rates, resulting in a sharp paradigm shift for investors and borrowers. These various developments have had a significant impact on reinsurers' earnings in 2022 but have also resulted in a combination of higher prices and higher investment returns, both of which are expected to strongly support reinsurers' performance in 2023.

In this challenging environment, SCOR continues to pursue its missions, once again demonstrating its ability to absorb the shocks of all kinds which the Group could be facing. The release of excess reserve margins in SCOR L&H enabled the Group to finance the increase in P&C technical reserves, to anticipate the impact of social and economic inflation. While the Group experienced significant claims from weather events and the Covid-19 pandemic, it remains very well capitalized with a Solvency ratio of 213%. SCOR ends 2022 with an accounting loss of EUR 301 million, which has been significantly reduced by the strong results in the fourth quarter."

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