It's plain sailing for Skandia's UK arm

With Cowes Week, which Skandia sponsors, still fresh in the memory, the company announced UK premium income up a massive 59 per cent on the same six months last year to £253m.

UK sales figures also took advantage of the favourable conditions, rising 57 per cent.

A spokesman put the success down to a concentration on profitable products and a market shift away from with profits products following the Equitable Life scandal.

The good news contrasts with the choppy water experienced by Skandia's much smaller Swedish parent where combined sales fell slightly.

Skandia Sweden has been hit by a series of damaging stories which have hurt the brand in its homeland, including a massive financial scandal, aspects of which are still the subject of an investigation by Sweden's chief public prosecutor.

A damning independent report pointed to a culture of greed and deception, with huge bonuses and unauthorised perks.

President and CEO Hans-Erik Andersson said: "We can ascertain that the steady intensification of competition in the market - especially in the occupational pensions segment - along with the negative attention surrounding the Skandia brand, has hurt our market position."

He added the company had brought the entire Swedish operation under the control of Gert Engman to reassure market concerns.

Overall, the group posted a 35 per cent jump in sales to £3.54 billion.

"Sales are particularly strong in the UK market," said Mr Andersson. "Our success in the UK is a result of a consistent and conscious focus on the multi-manager concept in unit linked assurance, with distribution through Independent Financial Advisers.

"We have shown a favourable trend in sales and earnings for the first half of the year. We have strengthened our position in most markets."

Skandia, which employs around 1,300 people in a flagship headquarters in the city centre,this week announced a deal for an undisclosed sum to continue its sponsorship of Cowes Week until 2008.