Canada’s Manulife beats profit estimates on Asia recovery

BENGALURU - Canada’s largest insurer, Manulife Financial, on Wednesday reported better-than-expected quarterly profit powered by strong insurance sales in Asia, its biggest market, as Hong Kong borders reopened after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Asia, where Manulife operates in over a dozen markets and caters to 13 million customers, is an important area for global and regional insurers as the region’s rapidly growing middle class seeks life and healthcare insurance as well as investment options.

Manulife said annual premium equivalent sales in Asia, a gauge of insurance sales in annualised metrics, rose 26 per cent in the second quarter ended June 30, as business recovered across the region, mainly in Hong Kong on demand from customers in mainland China after borders reopened earlier in 2023.

The Canadian insurer, wealth adviser and fund manager expects Asia to account for half of its core earnings by 2025 despite economic slowdown and the impact of Covid-19 on its key markets.

In July, it appointed former chief financial officer Phil Witherington as president and chief executive of its Asia business, where he will be focused on expanding into other regional markets. The company posted core net income of C$1.64 billion (S$1.63 billion), or 83 Canadian cents per share, compared with C$1.53 billion, or 76 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts were expecting 78 Canadian cents, according to Refinitiv data.

In Canada, annual premium equivalent sales fell 11 per cent and in the United States they decreased about 15 per cent. REUTERS