Arch Capital Group Ltd reported fourth quarter net income of $533.1 million, or $1.30 per share, up from $316 million for the same period in 2019.

Its after-tax operating income was $230.4 million, down from $308.4 million.

Pre-tax current accident year catastrophic losses were $156.4 million, including $400,000 of Covid-19 related losses.

For the full year, Arch Capital’s net income fell to $1.36 billion, compared to $1.59 billion in 2019.

In the fourth quarter its consolidated combined ratio was 88.3 per cent, up from 83.8 per cent for the same period in 2019. However, excluding catastrophic activity and prior year development the combined ratio improved from 81.4 per cent to 80.2 per cent.

The Bermudian-based re/insurer reported that the percentage of loans in default on US primary mortgage business was 4.19 per cent at the end of 2020, having fallen from 4.69 per cent at the end of September.

Book value per common share was $30.31 at December 31, a 5.4% increase for the fourth quarter, and a 14.7 per cent increase for the year.