reorganisation of its holdings in Societe Anonyme Francaise de Reassurances and PartnerRe to be completed "in the next few weeks''.

Swiss Re said in February it would buy all of SAFR and then sell the company to PartnerRe Ltd. of Bermuda.

Swiss Re will increase its stake in PartnerRe to 21.8 percent, from 11.1 percent in the deal, valued at $950 million.

The world's second-biggest reinsurer after Germany's Munich Re also repeated that it expects 1997 net profit to rise after a "satisfactory'' start to the year, and as a reorganisation takes hold and rising financial markets boost earnings.

"We expect the generally satisfactory business performance of early 1997, further improvements in the balance sheet and the expansion of the scope of consolidation to have a positive effect on the result,'' the company said in its annual report, which was published yesterday.

Swiss Re joins other Swiss insurers and reinsurers, including Zurich Insurance and Winterthur Insurance, in releasing an upbeat outlook for 1997 after all major Swiss insurance companies posted higher-than-expected 1996 earnings.

First-quarter claims in 1997 were "comparable'' to the previous year, the Swiss Re said, continuing "the favorable trend of recent years.'' Last year, Swiss Re's net profit soared 33 percent to 1.46 billion Swiss francs ($1 billion).

Swiss Re shares rose 24 francs to 1,987 on the Swiss Exchange, and have risen 39 percent this year. Swiss Re holds its annual general meeting on June 27.