French insurer Axa has followed the international trend with a lower first-half profit well down on last year’s figures. Its net income for January-June is $1.5 billion, compared with $2.1 billion for the 2001 half-year.

Axa said that the decrease was caused by a $403.2 million loss on its investments and an increase in September 11-related reserves of $159 million. Despite the gloom, Axa managed to raise its combined ratio from 111% to 106%, although it warned that the short-term future is difficult to predict in the midst of volatile capital markets.