American International Group said first-quarter 2023 underwriting income in its general insurance segment was $502 million, “representing the strongest first-quarter underwriting results AIG has achieved,” said CEO Peter Zaffino.

Net premiums written in general insurance increased 5 percent to nearly $7 billion in Q1. Validus and Lexington led North American commercial lines NPW growth of 14 percent to $3.37 billion, Zaffino said.

Excluding workers compensation, North America rate “reaccelerated” with a 8 percent Q1 increase, while International commercial rate also went up 8 percent during Q1 – each exceeding loss costs, Zaffino added.

General insurance’s combined ratio increased slightly to 92.9 compared to 91.9 in Q1 2022.

“These significant accomplishments demonstrate that our strategy in general insurance of focusing on underwriting excellence and volatility management enables sustainable growth and underwriting profitability over the long-term,” Zaffino said.

Overall, AIG’s net income for the first three months was $23 million, down significantly from income of $4.2 billion a year ago during the same period. The decline was due primarily to net realized losses on Fortitude Re funds, AIG said. Fortitude Re is Bermuda’s largest multi-line composite reinsurer.