Latest news with #MarketSegmentReport
Business Wire
a day ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Best's Market Segment Report: AM Best Maintains Negative Outlook on Brazil Reinsurance Market
BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best is maintaining a negative outlook on Brazil's reinsurance market segment, citing in part political uncertainty and tax reform measures that are pressuring industry profitability. In addition to the approaching 2026 elections, regulatory restrictions on foreign assets have limited domestic reinsurers' growth abroad, according to the Best's Market Segment Report. According to the report, Brazil's reinsurance market continues to recover, but a favorable trend needs to be sustained. AM Best will consider the outlook to be stable when the volatility of the industry's technical and bottom-line results narrows, coupled with positive technical income, amid the new tax reforms taking place in the country. Brazil's gross domestic product grew by 3.9% in 2024, despite an atmosphere of economic uncertainty. Strong private consumption has driven an increase in demand, while growth in services and agriculture contributed to growth on the supply side. However, the Brazilian real has undergone a significant devaluation, reaching 6.18 BRL/USD, as of 30 December 2024. Annual growth in Brazil's reinsurance segment was driven by the property, special risks, aeronautics and financial risk lines of business. This was offset by a decrease in the agricultural and marine business lines at the end of 2024. 'Agricultural reinsurance can be considered a natural catastrophe-like exposure that leaves the sector vulnerable, but this is being mitigated by innovative techniques that now monitor climate risks,' said Ricardo Rodriguez Perez, senior financial analyst, AM Best. 'Despite these initiatives, agriculture reinsurance declined by 47%.' Among the report's other highlights: Recent tax changes applied to Brazilian insurers and reinsurers have pressured profitability in 2025. These changes increase the tax applied to foreign exchange transactions, with offshore reinsurers paying more than triple the taxes than in previous years. A deceleration in reinsurance industry growth shows the improvement in risk selection from local or domestic reinsurers, but also reflects the increase of premium ceded by these insurers to reinsurers offshore. Brazil's (re) insurance segment has benefited from higher interest rates paid on its invested reserves. Investment income has contributed significantly to the profitability of Brazil's reinsurance industry, leading to positive bottom-line results for 2023 and 2024. To access the full copy of this market segment report, please visit
Business Wire
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Best's Market Segment Report: Reinsurers' Disciplined Capital Deployment and Underwriting Remain Key Foundations
BUSINESS WIRE)--A recalibration of the global reinsurance market since the January 2023 renewal period has led to a more-durable market structure characterized by reduced earnings volatility and stronger margins, supporting AM Best 's continued positive outlook on the industry. The Best's Market Segment Report, 'Reinsurers' Disciplined Capital Deployment and Underwriting Remain Key Foundations,' starts off AM Best's look at the global reinsurance industry ahead of the Rendez-Vous de Septembre in Monte Carlo. Other reports, including AM Best's ranking of top global reinsurance groups and in-depth looks at the insurance-linked securities, Lloyd's, life/annuity, health and regional reinsurance markets, will be available during August and September. According to this report, the shift since the January 2023 renewal in how risk is priced, shared and retained across the reinsurance industry has carried forward and translated into a second-straight year of solid results in 2024. The European 'Big Four' reinsurers posted a discounted combined ratio of 86.4% under IFRS 17; the discounting on average lowers the combined ratio by approximately eight percentage points. The U.S. and Bermuda composite reported an undiscounted combined ratio of 89.5% under U.S. GAAP. These results confirm that underwriting profitability has not only rebounded but is being sustained in the current reinsurance cycle. 'Reinsurers' risk-adjusted capitalization levels remain robust, reflecting retained earnings and disciplined capital management, and the strong underwriting profitability is being augmented by a surge in investment income given elevated interest rates,' said Michael Lagomarsino, senior director, AM Best. 'The absence of material new global reinsurance entrants also is ensuring that structural market discipline is maintained, distinguishing the current environment from previous market cycles.' According to the report, most global reinsurers have maintained their strong performance through the first half of 2025, despite global weather-related insured losses that will likely top USD 100 billion. These losses are primarily driven by the California wildfires, which many reinsurers are marking in the range of USD 30-50 billion. 'Assuming no further material weather events in the second half of 2025, the combination of disciplined underwriting, rate adequacy and robust investment income should deliver full-year operating results exceeding the cost of capital,' said Dan Hofmeister, associate director, AM Best. Global reinsurers also face headwinds other than climate change, including social inflation, growing geopolitical tensions and trade disputes, and these challenges underscore the importance of the market's improved structural foundations and explain why AM Best's outlook, though positive, remains closely scrutinized. 'The question now facing the industry is whether the improvements in terms and conditions represent a durable shift,' said Steven Chirico, director, AM Best. 'The lessons of past cycles suggest caution, but reinsurer sentiment has ensured tighter exposure management and market disciple in the current cycle.' To access the full copy of this market segment report, please visit For global reinsurance reports ahead of Rendez-Vous de Septembre, as well as video coverage of the event, please visit AM Best's Reinsurance Information center. Lastly, AM Best will host its annual reinsurance market briefing at Rendez-Vous de Septembre on Sept. 7, 2025, at 10:15 a.m. (CEST) in Monte Carlo. For more information, please visit the event website.
Business Wire
08-07-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Best's Market Segment Report: AM Best Maintains Stable Outlook on Global Cyber Insurance Segment
BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best is maintaining its stable outlook on the global cyber insurance segment, as demand for coverage remains strong and is anticipated to persist. The Best's Market Segment Report, 'Market Segment Outlook: Global Cyber Insurance,' states that although cyber insurance market conditions have softened since 2023, a major opportunity for market expansion still exists as awareness and adoption of cyber insurance continue to rise, particularly among small and medium-sized enterprises. Profitability is also expected to continue over the intermediate term despite ongoing competitive pressures. 'Fundamentally, the market's expansion is underpinned by increasing awareness of cyber risk and the need for risk transfer solutions to protect against the growing threat of cyber crime,' said Robert Gabriel, senior financial analyst, AM Best. 'Heightened awareness of cyber threats also has motivated insureds to strengthen their cyber hygiene, leading to more robust defenses and swifter incident responses, which in turn has helped to reduce potential losses.' Other factors underpinning the stable outlook include: Continued capital support and expansion fueled by reinsurers and, to some extent, alternative capital providers. Artificial intelligence-driven risk selection and underwriting, which builds in efficiencies. Regulatory and compliance requirements that are driving higher cyber insurance adoption. The report notes that systemic risks from large-scale cyber incidents remain a concern due to the interconnectedness of digital systems and the potential for cascading losses across industries. The AI-driven proliferation of cyber-attacks also can increase the scale and complexity of attacks. Additionally, the ongoing challenge of ransomware, business email compromise and funds transfer fraud continues to escalate. To access the full copy of this market segment report, please visit AM Best will host a briefing on July 23, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. EDT to discuss the state of the cyber insurance market, including evolving threats in the cyber space and how companies and insurers are working together to reduce losses. To register and learn more about the briefing, go to Additionally, the Best's Market Segment Report, 'US Cyber: Pricing Cuts Bring First Ever Reduction in Direct Premiums Written,' is available at
Business Wire
04-07-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Best's Market Segment Report: AM Best Maintains Negative Outlook
AMSTERDAM--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AM Best has maintained its negative outlook on France's non-life insurance segment. In its new Best's Market Segment Report, 'Market Segment Outlook: France Non-Life Insurance', AM Best states that non-life insurance growth prospects are expected to remain limited over the next months, tied to modest GDP growth expectations. The report also notes that the increase in frequency and severity of natural catastrophe events is expected to continue to put pressure on France's non-life insurers, despite the existence of the state-backed natural catastrophe scheme, Caisse Centrale de Réassurance (CCR). While a surcharge to existing premiums has been added since the start of 2025 to release some of the short-term pressure on CCR, AM Best believes that it will not be sufficient over the medium term amid changing climate trends and that further measures will have to be discussed to ensure the scheme's sustainability. To access a complimentary copy of this special report, please visit Copyright © 2025 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Best's Market Segment Report: AM Best Maintains Stable Outlook on South Korea's Non-Life Insurance Market
HONG KONG, June 04, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AM Best has maintained its stable outlook on South Korea's non-life insurance segment, noting a continued refinement of the country's domestic solvency standards that have helped strengthen insurers' capital management. Additional factors include moderate growth in the long-term and general insurance segments, and efforts to improve profitability in the former as well as in investment strategies. However, AM Best notes an offsetting factor of slow growth prospects and weakened underwriting profitability in South Korea's auto insurance segment. According to the Best's Market Segment Report, "Market Segment Outlook: South Korea Non-Life Insurance," the country's non-life insurance industry is facing capital pressure with increasing insurance liabilities, following the Financial Supervisory Service's (FSS) push for more realistic actuarial assumptions and a phased plan to cut discount rates until 2027, which are intended to improve credibility and comparability of insurers' financials. "These ongoing regulatory changes, coupled with a decreasing trend in domestic interest rates, are expected to pose a considerable burden on insurers' solvency, especially those with relatively weaker capital positions," said Seokjae Lee, senior financial analyst, AM Best. "However, AM Best expects these changes will promote economic value-based capital management for insurers to maintain sound capital adequacy across the industry." Over the next 12 months, AM Best expects the industry to experience moderate growth with heightened emphasis on profitability management of long-term insurance following a few years of intensified market competition and with a focus on mitigating increasing solvency pressures. According to the report, the auto insurance segment has experienced a slowdown in its premium growth in recent years, owing to sluggish vehicle registrations and cumulative premium rate cuts to support the consumer economy. A notable trend is a high and increasing market concentration among large insurers. "With the fast-growing online auto insurance market, large insurers are more likely to maintain premium growth as they benefit from factors such as economies of scale, strong marketing capability and digital infrastructure," said Chanyoung Lee, director, AM Best. To access the full copy of this market segment report, please visit AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit Copyright © 2025 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. View source version on Contacts Seokjae LeeSenior Financial Analyst +852 2827 3407 Christopher Sharkey Associate Director, Public Relations +1 908 882 2310 Chanyoung Lee Director, Analytics +852 2827 3404 Cynthia Ang Senior Industry Research Analyst +65 6303 5026
