Zurich Insurance posted a profit of $1.6 billion in the first six months of 2016, 22 percent less than a year ago, the insurer said in a statement today.

The drop was much less pronounced on an operating level, where it fell 2 percent to $2.2 billion. Mario Greco, who became the insurer's new CEO in May, said that the company had made «significant progress» toward a better performance in the first half, and in particular during the second quarter.

Restructuring Charges

The main reasons for the drop in net income were a lower level of realized capital gains, restructuring charges related to the turnaround plan and a higher effective tax rate, Zurich said.

Operating profit at the General Insurance unit increased by 3 percent to $1.21 billion, dropped by 1 percent to $667 million at Global Life and decreased by 6 percent to $678 million at Farmers.

Efficiency Program Delivers

«Our efficiency program is beginning to deliver results and we have taken steps to strengthen our geographic footprint by enhancing our position in the U.S., Malaysia and Australia while exiting several positions where we saw limited potential,» Greco said.

«As we prepare for the next strategy cycle, we have already taken steps to simplify our management and operating structures, which will allow us to better serve our customers and respond more easily to external developments.»