US property and casualty insurers have recorded a 59.3% drop in net income to $US5.8 billion ($6.6 billion) in the first half of this year compared to the corresponding period last year.

A report by the Insurance Services Office and the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America shows net investment gains have fallen 50.2% to $US12.4 billion ($14.2 billion), driving the decline in insurers’ net income and rate of return.

Net written premiums have dropped 4.2% to $US212.8 billion ($243 billion) while the combined ratio improved to 100.9% from 102%.

Meanwhile, net losses on underwriting have fallen from $US5.6 billion ($6.4 billion) to $US2.2 billion ($2.5 billion).

The association’s President and CEO, David Sampson, says the insurers continue to be healthy and competitive “despite the lingering effects of an unprecedented financial crisis that brought down many once-iconic banks and Wall Street institutions”.