Reinsurance firm RenaissanceRe yesterday posted $69.4 million in profits for the last quarter of 2016 — $22.8 million down on the $92.2 million for the same period of 2015.

The company said that Hurricane Matthew, a Category 5 storm that cut through the Caribbean and parts of Canada and US, major storms in Texas and the Fort McMurray wildfire in Canada had all impacted the firm.

Kevin O’Donnell, RenRe CEO, said: “I am proud of how our team navigated the challenges of 2016 while building an attractive portfolio of risks and continuing to execute our strategy.

“We have strengthened our operating platforms globally, developed deeper relationships with more clients, brought more efficient capital solutions to market and exercised underwriting discipline in building a diverse and profitable portfolio of risk.”

The fourth-quarter figures meant net income for the year of $480.6 million compared to $408.8 million in 2015.

RenRe reported gross premiums written of $323.1 million for the quarter, down $13 million, or 3.9 per cent, compared to the same period the year before.

The firm’s casualty and speciality segment dropped $21.5 million, or 7.4 per cent, while the property segment went up $8.5 million or 19.4 per cent.

Over the quarter, RenRe generated underwriting income of $103.9 million, compared to $139.9 million in the last quarter of 2015.

The company report said an increase in the combined ratio between the fourth quarter last year and the same period the year before was driven by an increase in net claims and claim expenses and underwriting expenses, adding 7 and 2.2 percentage points to the combined ratio respectively.

The report added: “Included in net claims and claim expenses in the fourth quarter of 2016 was $60.1 million of net claims and claim expenses associated with Hurricane Matthew.

“The net negative impact of this event on the company’s consolidated underwriting result was $51 million, adding 15.8 percentage points to the company’s consolidated combined ratio.”