SINGAPORE – United Overseas Insurance (UOI) reported a 123.2 per cent rise in net profit after tax to $18.3 million for the nine months ended Sept 30, up from $8.2 million in the same period a year prior.

This was due primarily to $9.5 million in non-underwriting income for the period, compared with $100,000 previously.

UOI is the general insurance arm of UOB.

Insurance revenue for the nine months ended Sept 30 grew 7.9 per cent to $68.4 million, from $63.4 million in the corresponding period a year ago.

This was “mainly due to higher contractual service margin and recovery of insurance acquisition cash flows”, UOI said in a bourse filing on Tuesday.

However, higher losses on “onerous contracts and higher software and manpower costs” sent insurance service expenses up by 14.5 per cent to $45.9 million, from $40.1 million previously.

This was partially offset by an 18.8 per cent decrease in net expenses from reinsurance contracts to $10.4 million for the period, from $12.8 million a year prior.

Total comprehensive income for the first nine months of 2023 came in at $17.3 million, reversing a $24.4 million loss in the corresponding period a year ago.

Shares of UOI closed four cents lower at $6.01 on Wednesday. THE BUSINESS TIMES