NU Online News Service, July 6, 2004, 1:22 p.m. EDT
U.S. life and health insurance industry profits quadrupled in 2003.[@@]
Weiss Ratings Inc., Jupiter, Fla., says total industry profits increased to $30 billion last year on $3.8 trillion in assets, up from $7.3 billion on $3.4 trillion in assets in 2002.
The stock market rebound and a shift to annuity products with more conservative rate guarantees contributed to the improvement and helped increase industry capital and surplus to $274 billion at the end of 2003, up from $243 billion a year earlier, Weiss says.
| Segment Results | ||
| Product | 2003 | 2002 |
| Group annuities | $5.8 billion | $4.5 billion |
| Group health | $4.3 billion | $2.1 billion |
| Individual annuities | $6.9 billion | $689 million loss |
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