UPDATE 2-Vienna Insurance scraps mid-term goals

* Says to reach 2008 pretax goal "depending on market" * Cuts 2009 pretax goal, withdraws 2010/2011 targets * Q3 pretax profit up 9 pct to 118.4 million euros * Shares down 1.6 pct midday

(Adds analyst comment, background on central Europe)

By Boris Groendahl and Eva Komarek

VIENNA, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Vienna Insurance Group (VIGR.VI), emerging Europe's second-largest insurer, scrapped its mid-term goals on Tuesday, blaming financial market unpredictability, but said it would probably reach its profit target for 2008.

Vienna Insurance said its goal to post 540 million euros ($696 million) in pretax profit this year still stood, but qualified it by adding that this depended "on the development of the capital markets in the fourth quarter".

The group, second only to Allianz (ALVG.DE) in the fast growing markets of the former Communist bloc, said it was still happy with its business in the region, but it also did not repeat its premium revenue growth forecasts.

"There will be an economic impact (on emerging Europe), but this will have little impact on the retail insurance business," Geyer told journalists at a news conference.

Growth in emerging Europe has protected Vienna Insurance from the problems seen at rivals such as Denmark's TrygVesta (TRYG.CO), which halved its profit forecast on Tuesday, or at Swiss Re (RUKN.VX) and Hannover Re (HNRGn.DE) last week.

However, this puts investors on the lookout for any sign its growth could slow, and analysts said they were not fully convinced Vienna Insurance could escape altogether.

"(The revision) indicates that management's evaluation of its financial performance may have become materially more cautious recently," said Ralph Hebgen of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a note to clients.

"(This) is likely to send a warning signal to investors relating to achievable medium-term growth to be sourced from Vienna Insurance's key potential growth region," he said.

Shares in Vienna Insurance dropped as much as 5.6 percent but pared losses to trade 1.6 percent down at 24.60 euros by 1106 GMT, while the DJ Stoxx European insurers index .SXIP was down 3.8 percent.

THIRD QUARTER INTACT

Pretax profit in the third quarter rose 9 percent to 118.4 million euros, while consolidated premiums written grew 17 percent to 1.803 billion euros. Both numbers were slightly ahead of analysts' expectations. [ID:nL7245109]

The insurer had previously forecast average annual pretax profit growth of 25 percent, rising to 1.05 billion euros until 2011 on premium income of 12 billion euros by that time. For 2009, it had promised around 650 million euros.