Life insurance growth outpaces general economic activity

Non-life premium growth, on the other hand, was slower in most countries than the rise in GDP which, according to Swiss Re’s latest sigma report, was largely due to a decline in premium rates in commercial lines such as aviation and marine, which had experienced sharp rate rises between 2001 and 2004

The global insurance industry wrote US$3,426bn in premiums in 2005, representing an increase of 2.5% in real terms over the previous year, according to a Swiss Re sigma study.