Depreciation in LatAm currencies weaken MAPFRE's Q1 results

MAPFRE has blamed a strong depreciation in Latin American currencies for the decrease in revenue reported in its first quarter 2016 results.

MAPFRE's reported revenue for this period decreased by 3.4 percent to €7.3 billion from the same period of 2015. It highlighted a strong depreciation in the currencies of Venezuela and Brazil due to various political crises.

However, MAPFRE said that its insurance unit generated premiums of €5 billion, while the reinsurance business contributed approximately €1 billion in premiums in the first three months of 2016.

MAPFRE's net profit for this period was €192 million, down 4.8 percent from the first quarter of 2015.

MAPFRE claimed that the net result would have grown by 6 percent if it excluded the impact of the currency depreciation.

The profitability of MAPFRE's underwriting declined slightly, with its combined ratio decreasing by two percentage points to 96.8 percent.