(Reuters) – MetLife Inc on Wednesday reported a 53% drop in third-quarter profit as economic pressures and a global market rout led to weaker returns from the U.S. insurer’s investments.
The company’s U.S. unit saw a 17% decline in adjusted profit, while the Asia segment recorded a 65% slump.
Fewer claims tied to COVID-19 as the cases ease around the world helped the insurer ride out disappointing investment returns in the quarter.
Adjusted premiums, fees and other revenue grew 71% to $19.53 billion in the quarter. However, that was not enough to offset the hit to net investment income, which fell 36% to $3.59 billion.
The company posted adjusted profit of $966 million, or $1.21 per share, compared to $2.06 billion, or $2.39 per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Mehnaz Yasmin and Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
