Hansard Share News (HSD)

(ShareCast News) - Specialist long-term savings provider Hansard Global is confident of delivering growth during the rest of the year, after reporting significantly increased new business levels.In a trading statement for the period 1 July to 30 September, Hansard said during the first quarter it continued to deliver significantly increased new business levels on the year.New business for Hansard International Ltd in the first-quarter totalled £33.9m in Present Value of New Business Premiums (PVNBP) terms, or about 73% up on the year.Middle East & Africa and Rest of World regions continued to be the key drivers of this growth, the company said. This was in line with the continued implementation of its strategy.Assets under administration had risen by £58m at end-September, or 6% to £982m."We are pleased that our increased levels of new business continue to demonstrate the sustainability of the trend established over the past 12 months and it is particularly encouraging to achieve further growth in comparison with the final quarter of the 2016 financial year," said chief executive Gordon Marr."Despite global political and economic uncertainties ahead, we are confident of making further progress on our strategic goals and delivering continued growth during the remainder of the year," Marr said.At about 12:02 GMT, shares in Hansard Global were up 4.9% to 107p.