Hull and Cargo Insurance Market Steady, for Now

The International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) has released its 2025 analysis of the global marine insurance market – the IUMI “Stats Report”.

Commenting on this year’s report, IUMI Secretary General, Lars Lange said: “Our data relating to 2024 shows that the ocean hull and cargo markets have been relatively stable with little positive development. The offshore energy sector continued to struggle as a result of a low oil price and a reduction in capex spend in some regions.

“As we progressed through 2024 and into 2025 we have seen some significant headwinds creating challenges for all lines of business. Geopolitical and trade tensions have generated an unprecedented level of uncertainty involving war risks, tariffs and other economic measures. Global interest rates have fallen, inflation is down in most regions but the weak US dollar is squeezing premium income whilst adding to claims costs for those insurers paying out in non-US dollar currencies.

“Added to this, the ongoing issues surrounding the greening of the global fleet – notwithstanding the recent IMO decision to delay – is a major challenge to be addressed as is the need to cover a growing fleet where the average vessel age is approaching 23 years. Climate change, the persistence of large vessel fires and risk accumulations continue to impact underwriters.”

Highlights from this year’s report includes:

Global marine insurance premiums in 2024 totaled $39.92 billion, a 1.5% uplift on 2023. Stability was seen across all lines of business except for offshore energy where premiums reduced by almost 8%. Drivers included a continued rise in global trade volumes and values (cargo), changes in vessel numbers and values (hull) and oil price dynamics (offshore energy).

Ocean hull premiums were reported at $9.67 billion, up by 3.5% on the previous year. Europe continues to dominate and reported an unbroken growth trend since 2019. Growth in the Russian hull market reached 42% largely due to sanctions preventing Russia from placing risks overseas. Loss ratios for Europe remained relatively stable.

Premiums for cargo insurance reached $22.64 billion representing a 1.6% uptick on last year. Subdued growth was largely due to general economic and trade conditions. China performed particularly well, however. Loss ratios improved for the sixth consecutive year.

The offshore energy sector reversed its recent run of premium base growth to report a 7.9% reduction at $4.34 billion for 2024. London continues to dominate this market with a 60% share. Notably, the Nordics was the only market to expand its share in 2024 (by 27%). A pressurized oil price, sanctions, decarbonization initiatives and market capacity have all played a part in the performance of this business line.