Turkey’s insurance sector posts growth

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s insurance sector grew 6.4 percent in the first 11 months of 2014 compared to the same period last year.

According to data released by the Insurance Association of Turkey on Dec. 31, 2014, the insurance sector’s premium production rose to 22.9 billion Turkish Liras ($10 billion) in the period, from 21.5 billion liras in the same period a year earlier.

Although the Turkish economy’s growth rate stood at 2.8 percent in the first nine months, the insurance sector showed a major increase.

Nearly 20 billion liras ($8.6 billion) of premium production were related to types of insurance other than life insurance, such as traffic, house and workplace coverage; nearly 3 billion ($1.3 billion) liras were bought in life insurance.

Insurance companies’ growth was reflected in their profitability as the sector’s profits reached over 1.07 billion liras from 978 million liras, with a 9.5 percent increase in the first nine months of 2014.

Many foreign investors are in Turkey’s lucrative insurance market given its emerging economy and large population of over 76 million people.