AIG has reported a net income of $US922 million ($1.37 billion) in the fourth quarter, making a strong recovery from the $US622 million ($924.9 million) loss the business suffered a year earlier.

Lower catastrophe losses, improvements in the general insurance division and higher net investment income combined to help the business during the period.

For the full year, net income reached $US3.3 billion ($4.9 billion), compared with a $US6 million ($8.9 million) loss in 2018.

“Our financial results for the fourth quarter and for full year 2019 reflect the significant progress we made over the course of 2019 to position AIG for long-term, sustainable and profitable growth,” CEO Brian Duperreault said.

“As we look to 2020, we will continue to be laser-focused on executing on our strategy to position AIG as both a leading insurance franchise and a top-performing company.”

The general insurance division made an adjusted pre-tax income of $US778 million ($1.16 billion) for the December quarter, recovering from the $US722 million ($1.07 billion) loss a year earlier.

Gross written premium declined 5% to $US7.3 billion ($10.9 billion) but underwriting returned to the black with a $US12 million ($17.8 million) profit, compared with a $US1.07 billion ($1.6 billion) deficit in the corresponding period of 2018.

The combined ratio improved to 99.8% from 115%.