Munich Re posts 3% rise in Q1 profit, writes down Russian and Ukraine bonds

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Munich Re on Tuesday posted a 3% rise in net profit for the first quarter, weighed down by a drop in its investment result after it made writedowns on Russian and Ukrainian bonds.

The German reinsurer said that it was sticking to its profit guidance for the full year though it warned of “considerable uncertainty regarding the financial impact” of the war in Ukraine.

Net profit in the quarter of 608 million euros ($643.08 million) compares with 589 million euros a year ago and is slightly better than expectations of 597 million euros.

“The financial consequences of the war and the sanctions severely impacted our result in the first quarter,” said Chief Financial Officer Christoph Jurecka.

Munich Re took writedowns of almost 700 million euros on Russian and Ukrainian bonds.

For the full year, it expects 3.3 billion euros of net profit.

The effect of the war has also left its mark on competitor Swiss Re, which last week posted a first-quarter loss after setting aside reserves and after volatile markets hurt investments

($1 = 0.9454 euros)

(Reporting by Tom Sims and Alexander Huebner; Editing by Maria Sheahan)