Net income per share was 90 cents for the period, compared with 70 cents for the same quarter last year, a 29 percent gain, the company said.

ACE's net operating income for the quarter was $279 million, compared with $216 million for the same 2002 period.

The company's combined ratio for its non-life business in the first quarter was 90.6, compared to 93.1 for the first quarter last year.

Gross premiums written came to $4.1 billion for the quarter, compared with $3.1 billion for the first quarter last year?a 32 percent increase. Net premiums written rose to $2.9 billion, compared with $2 billion last year, a 48 percent increase. Net premiums earned came to $2.1 billion, compared with $1.4 billion last year, a 52 percent increase.

Net investment income rose 3 percent to $206 million for the quarter, compared with $200 million in the prior year's quarter.

Brian Duperreault, chairman and chief executive officer of ACE Limited, said the results marked an excellent start for the current fiscal year.

"We were able to demonstrate the earning power we have been building over the last three years," he said in a statement. "We benefited from growth in earned premiums, improved underwriting margins and strong positive cash flow."

However, he noted that low investment yields limited investment income growth to 3 percent.

In an interview, Mr. Duperreault said ACE's growth rate is "very strong" on the casualty side and not nearly as strong on the property side.

This is due to a changing complexion in ACE's earnings to a longer-tail line basis, which means more investment income and probably less underwriting income because longer-tail lines tend to have a higher combined ratio, he said.

This will keep ACE's "combined ratio up a bit," he said.

"Casualty was particularly underpriced in the softer market," he said. "Property rebounded more rapidly, therefore the ability to sell insurance at a reasonable return was greater on the property side than on the casualty side."

As casualty rates catch up and start to produce acceptable return, "we would naturally shift our attention to it," Mr. Duperreault said.