Baku, Azerbaijan, March 15
By Azad Hasanli - Trend:
Fitch Ratings has revised AzInsurance OJSC's (AzInsurance) Outlook to Negative from Stable while affirming its Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) rating at 'B+', the statement said March 14.
The affirmation of the rating reflects the insurer's strong market position and a significant cushion in its underwriting profitability, Fitch Ratings said.
AzInsurance faces additional risk related to the reduction in imports, as cargo insurance, mainly focused on imported goods, accounted for 34 percent of the insurer's net written premiums in 2010-2014.
On the asset side, the devaluation has helped AzInsurance generate significant FX gains, as 69 percent of the insurer's portfolio was placed in USD-denominated instruments at end-2015, Fitch Ratings said.
The company's net profit improved to 17 million manat in 2015 from 13 million manat in 2014.
The official exchange rate is 1.6411 AZN/USD as of March 15.
AZInsurance has been working on the Azerbaijani insurance market since 2006. It has branches and representative offices in many districts of the country, namely, Sumgait, Ganja, Lankaran, Shirvan, Sheki, Gabala, Tartar, Yevlakh and Shamakhi.