SINGAPORE - OCBC Bank’s insurance arm Great Eastern said profit for the second half of the year ended December 2022 declined 37 per cent to $281.3 million, from $443.1 million in the same period a year ago.

In a bourse filing on Wednesday, the group attributed this to the “negative impact of financial market movements” which adversely impacted the valuation of insurance contract liabilities.

Gross premiums for the second half of 2022 fell 21 per cent to $7.7 billion from $9.8 billion, due to lower sales in single premium products.

The group’s earnings per share for the second half of 2022 stood at 60 cents, down from 93 cents for the second half of 2021.

Great Eastern proposed a dividend of 55 cents per share for the second half of 2022, payable on May 8 after books closure on April 28.

Full-year profit for the insurer was down 30 per cent to $784.2 million, from $1.1 billion for fiscal 2021.

Gross premiums dipped 2 per cent to $18.6 billion, from nearly $19 billion in 2021.

Mr Khor Hock Seng, group chief executive of Great Eastern, said that while the company’s profit was affected by volatility in the global financial market, its investment portfolio remained sound and its capital position remained strong.

But he noted a challenging business climate in the year ahead, due to geopolitical uncertainty, a difficult investment climate and inflationary pressures.

Shares in Great Eastern fell 34 cents, or 1.81 per cent, to $18.45 on Wednesday. THE BUSINESS TIMES