Markets bolster Sanlam

Johannesburg - South Africa's No. 2 insurer, Sanlam, said on Wednesday normalised headline earnings per share rose five-fold in the 10 months to end-October, boosted by recovering financial markets.

But the company said core earnings per share fell one percent in the 10 months to end-October as new business volumes in both its home market and the UK declined.

Sanlam, one of the biggest asset managers in South Africa, said its personal finance and new life business volumes fell 6 percent, while new business volumes in Britain slumped 43 percent.

New business volumes, excluding low margin white label business, rose 2 percent bolstered by institutional fund flows, the group said.

Sanlam said the economic environment remained challenging and is likely to impact growth.

Shares in the group gained 0.72% to R22.49 after the trading update, compared to a 0.46 percent increase in the JSE financial index.

- Reuters