Allianz SE (AZ) expects around EUR300 million to EUR400 million in write-downs on the company's equity investments in the second quarter, if markets remain at current levels, Chief Financial Officer Helmut Perlet said Wednesday.

In the first quarter, the group booked EUR708 million write-downs on equity investments, which include reductions in the book value of the insurer's investments in Banco Popular Espanol SA (POP.MC) and Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. (HIG) of the U.S., while no write-downs on its stake in Commerzbank AG (CBK.XE) were necessary in the quarter.

Company Web site: www.allianz.com

-By Ulrike Dauer, Dow Jones Newswires; +49 69 29725 500; ulrike.dauer@dowjones.com