GIC Re on Thursday reported a 6.1 percent increase in net profit at Rs 732 crore in the June quarter, despite a steep fall in gross premium income and massive underwriting of losses.

The company — the country’s only reinsurer — had recorded a net profit of Rs 689.72 crore in the year-ago period, it said.

GIC Re said its gross premium income in the first quarter of the current fiscal declined to Rs 8,917.71 crore from Rs 11,021.83 crore a year ago.

It underwrote Rs 1,557.44 crore losses in the quarter under review compared to that of Rs 776.29 crore in the year-ago period.

The mounting underwriting of losses saw the combined ratio — a key profitability metric in general insurance — falling to 118.47 during the quarter as against 110.97 for the year-ago period.

The adjusted combined ratio — the sum of the loss ratio and the expense ratio — stood at 97.24 as against 97.01 in the year-ago quarter.

The solvency ratio of the state-run firm rose to 2.88 from 2.14.

Total assets of GIC Re rose to Rs 1,64,258.75 crore from Rs 1,46,178.09 crore.

The reinsurer’s gross premium income during the quarter declined to Rs 8,917.71 crore from Rs 11,021.83 crore, while the net premium fell to Rs 8,231.17 crore from Rs 10,493.68 crore.

The company paid Rs 1,840.94 crore in commission as against Rs 1,655.56 crore in the June quarter last year. The commission as a percentage of net premium increased to 22.4 percent from 15.8 percent a year earlier.

The firm’s management expenses nearly doubled to Rs 86.28 crore from Rs 49.80 core.