The insurance sector increases the volume of premiums by 2.16% in 2018

• This improvement is due to the 5.42% increase in premiums in Non-Life branches
• The insurance sector maintains a solid level of sector solvency, which stands at 239% and continues to advance in the development of the governance and transparency system requirements
• Within the framework of the creation of the Macroprudential Authority in 2018, the General Directorate of Insurance and Pension Funds has been equipped with new macroprudential tools aimed at preventing and mitigating possible risks in the insurance sector.

The volume of premiums earned by the insurance sector experienced a growth of 2.16% in 2018, to 65,909 million euros, according to the data included in the Annual Insurance and Pensions Report published by the General Directorate of Insurance and Pension funds. This increase in premiums has allowed the peso of the insurance sector to be at the end of the year at 5.46% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The business improvement is due to the increase in the volume of activity of Non-Life branches, which with a weight in the sector of 55.8%, have experienced premium growth of 5.42%, confirming the trend of the last years. On the other hand, the Life branch continues the downward path initiated in 2017, although with less intensity, registering a decrease of 1.67%.

The technical-financial result is slightly reduced compared to the previous year, both for Life (8.01% vs. 10.22%) and Non-Life (9.89% vs. 9.94%), in both cases with improvements in the technical results of the insurance business, and with worsening financial results due to the environment of low interest rates.

In relation to investments, the composition of the portfolio is maintained, with fixed income being the category of assets with the greatest weight in the total (53.61%), followed by private fixed income (20.22%), with a slight increase in investment in variable income (5.79%) and in collective investment institutions (7.52%).

It should be noted that in 2018 there was an improvement in the credit quality of the portfolio, derived from the increase in the credit rating of the Kingdom of Spain and the weight of the State Public Debt within the investment structure.

With regard to supplementary social security systems, all savings managed in 2018 amounted to 152,022 million euros. The bulk of managed funds corresponded to pension plans and funds, with a total of 105,889 million euros, 4.38% less than in the previous year. The patrimony in collective insurances stood at 25,774 million euros; in Insurance Plans Insured (PPA) 11,902 million; in Corporate Social Welfare Plans, 458 million and in dependency insurance, 22 million euros.

In 2018, third year of application of Solvency II, the insurance sector has maintained a solid level of sector solvency, with a ratio that stood at 239% at the end of the year, and has continued to advance in the development of the requirements of system of government and transparency.

Finally, it should be noted that, in 2018, within the framework of the creation of the Macroprudential Authority Financial Stability Board (AMCESFI), the General Directorate of Insurance and Pension Funds was provided with new macroprudential tools aimed at preventing and mitigating potential risks in the insurance sector. Thus, he was authorized to establish limits on exposure to certain sectors of economic activity and asset categories and to risk transfer transactions and insurance portfolios.