HDFC Life posts quarterly profit rise on retail insurance demand

BENGALURU, Oct 15 (Reuters): India's HDFC Life Insurance reported a higher second-quarter profit on Wednesday, driven by strong demand for retail insurance products and a pickup in market-linked plans.
Net premium income for the quarter rose 13 per cent to 187.77 billion rupees ($2.13 billion), supported by an 11 per cent increase in one-time premiums, and a 17 per cent growth in premiums from older policies which were renewed.
However, commission paid for sales jumped 25 per cent, hitting the bottom line.
The insurer's net profit rose 3.3 per cent year-on-year to 4.47 billion rupees for the quarter ended September 30.
Analysts said that robust retail demand for life insurance helped HDFC Life in July-September while demand for market-linked products also recovered.