MANULIFE Financial posted a better-than-expected third-quarter (Q3) profit on Wednesday, as the Canadian insurer benefited from a robust performance in its Asia and wealth management businesses.
Canada’s leading life insurers have increasingly focused on expansion in Asia, a key market for their growth and global exposure.
Core earnings from Manulife’s Asia business jumped 17 percent to CA$453 million ($324.96 million) in the quarter compared to last year.
The strong performance in the Asia unit was driven by higher insurance sales in Hong Kong, mainland China, Singapore and Japan, Manulife said.
Manulife’s annual premium equivalent, an important sales metric used by life insurers, jumped 40 percent during the quarter, powered by a 64-percent jump in its Asia unit.
The results mirror those of smaller rival Sun Life, which also beat expectations for quarterly profit, thanks to strong insurance sales.
Manulife’s wealth and asset management business was another bright spot, with core earnings from the unit jumping 37 percent to a record CA$499 million.
The unit generated higher fee income, thanks to higher equity markets and strong net flows.
Manulife’s wealth and asset management saw net inflows of CA$5.2 billion, compared to net outflows of CA$0.8 billion a year earlier, driven by strong retail net flows.
The demand for investment products rose amid an equity market recovery, resulting in strong retail net flows, Manulife said.
The company’s core earnings increased to CA$1.83 billion, or CA$1.00 per share, in the three months ended Sept. 30, from CA$1.74 billion, or 92 Canadian cents per share, a year ago.
Analysts, on average, had expected Manulife to earn 94 Canadian cents per share, according to estimates compiled by LSEG.
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