Net income increased by 6% to R7.1 billion (R6.7 billion) and operating income jumped by 70% to R833 million (R491 million). Net attributable profit surged by 83% to R578 million (R316 million). In addition, headline earnings on a per share basis grew to 511cps (284cps). Dividend An interim dividend of 185cps has been declared as well as a special dividend of 500cps. Outlook General consensus is that economic growth is expected to be fairly flat for the remainder of the year, with domestic insurance industry premium growth most likely below the nominal growth of the economy. It is anticipated that the market will continue to be soft, both for commercial and personal lines business as the recovery of the domestic economy is slower than anticipated. Santam remains concerned over the low levels of disposable income of individuals and earnings pressure on businesses which make achievement of an appropriate risk rate challenging. Expectations are that underwriting margins could normalise within the long-term target range of between 4% and 6%. The company will continue its efforts to optimise profitability in all aspects of the business with a strong focus on risk management and improving efficiencies. Santam is well positioned to face current challenges with its unique diversification and scale benefits. It remains difficult to predict financial markets and we expect the current volatility to remain. Until there is more clarity regarding sovereign debt exposures of several developed countries and its impact on the world economy, markets will remain under pressure. In line with general consensus management expects interest rates to remain at current or lower levels for the foreseeable future, limiting significant increases in returns on cash-related investments.