The severe disruption in world financial markets is stated to impact Aegon's earnings
Aegon, a life insurance and pension company, has reported a loss before tax of E1.28 billion for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2008, compared to income before tax of E762m for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2007.
For the fourth quarter of 2008, net loss was E1.18 billion, as compared to net income of E648m for the same quarter in 2007. Net operating loss for the fourth quarter of 2008 was E623m, as against net operating earnings of E399m for the fourth quarter of 2007.
For the year ended December 31, 2008, the group reported a loss before tax of E1.06 billion, as compared to income before tax of E3.08 billion for the year ended December 31, 2007. Net loss for the year 2008 was $1.08 billion, as compared to a net income of E2.55 billion in 2007. Net operating earnings for the year 2008 were E69million, compared to E1.8 billion for the year 2007.
Alex Wynaendts, CEO of Aegon, said: The severe disruption in world financial markets significantly impacted Aegon’s earnings during the fourth quarter of 2008. This challenging environment which has persisted in the early part of 2009 confirms that our strategic priorities of releasing capital and reducing costs, as well as putting in place contingencies to withstand further market deterioration are the right ones.
We believe that the solid fundamentals of our business, combined with Aegon’s financial position and the actions we are taking justify their continued confidence.