Insurance Australia Group, New Zealand's largest general insurer, has reported a 75 per cent first-half gain in its kiwi operations.
Earnings for the division were $A93 million for the six months ended December 31, up from $53m in the same period a year earlier, IAG said in a statement on Friday.
IAG had an 18 per cent gain in its gross written premium (GWP) revenue to $884m. The division's insurance margin was 12.4 per cent, up from 8.3 per cent a year earlier.
The company, which trades in New Zealand under the State, NZI and AMI brands, is awaiting clearance from Australasian antitrust regulators to buy Wesfarmers' WFI and Lumley Insurance brands.
Full year forecasts didn't assume a contribution from Wesfarmers acquisitions, but "it remains the group's expectation that the related transaction will be completed in the second quarter of calendar 2014, subject to regulatory approvals".
IAG expects that GWP will grow at a slower pace in the second-half due to increased competition, although underlying profit will remain steady due to the integration of AMI and stronger earnings generated from significant premium increases over the previous years.
The insurer said it had settled 51 per cent of all Canterbury earthquakes claims, worth more than $US2.7 billion ($A3.00 billion) in the first-half, up from $NZ2.2b for the same period a year earlier.
Finalisation of commercial claims was close to 80 per cent settled.
Of residential claims, 70 per cent were either under way or settled.
