The nation's seven major nonlife insurers on Friday reported an increase in net profit in fiscal 2003, with rising Japanese stock prices offsetting profit falls in their mainstay automobile insurance services.
Reduced claims for natural disasters also improved the firms' financial health by reducing insurance payouts during the year that ended March 31, the firms said.
Sompo Japan Insurance Inc., the nation's second-largest nonlife insurer, swung into the black in fiscal 2003, raking in 64.1 billion yen in net profit.