Japan’s four major life insurance companies have reported record-high core profits for the previous fiscal year, driven by an improved investment environment. According to NHK, the insurers benefited from higher dividends from stock holdings and rising interest rates.
Nippon Life Insurance led the way with a 32% year-on-year increase in basic profit to JPY1.0109tn, surpassing the JPY1tn mark in core profits for the first time. The other three major players also recorded historic highs: Dai-ichi Life Holdings saw a 21% rise to JPY638.8bn, Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance posted an 11% increase to JPY626.4bn, and Sumitomo Life Insurance reported a 24% gain to JPY379.8bn.
The surge in profits was largely attributed to gains from stock dividends and higher yields on investment assets amid rising interest rates. However, insurance premiums and other income declined year-on-year for two of the four companies, reflecting intensifying competition among financial institutions for customer assets. This comes as more individuals shift funds into investment trusts and other vehicles following the expansion of the NISA (tax-free savings) scheme.
Nippon Life Executive Vice President Naoki Akahori commented, “We’ve achieved a significant profit increase, but given the highly uncertain outlook, we cannot afford to be optimistic about these results.”
