Tariff impacts could reshape the cargo insurance market, an annual marine industry conference has heard.

International Union of Marine Insurance cargo committee chair Mike Brews says tariffs are just beginning to make their presence felt.

“In the coming months, we’ll be watching closely to see how they reshape insured cargo values and whether shippers and receivers shift to new markets and destinations to work around them,” he said.

“These changes could alter the entire cargo landscape.”

Tariffs could increase insured values, and associated risk accumulations, by as much as 50%, particularly in North America. Other regions could feel the effects depending on supply chains, Mr Brews told the conference in Singapore last week.

Global marine insurance premium rose 1.5% to $US39.92 billion ($60.38 billion) last year, with Europe accounting for 46.96%, Asia-Pacific 29.79%, Latin America 10.19%, North America 7.75%, the Middle East 3.53% and Africa 1.38%.

Cargo premium was up 1.6% to $US22.64 billion ($34.25 billion), continuing a multi-year upward trend, while the claims environment remained relatively benign with no major catastrophic losses reported.

Mr Brews says cargo insurance market capacity has increased and some underwriters are taking on larger risks at competitive premiums.  

The ocean hull underwriting market also has increased capacity and some “prioritisation of growth over technical discipline”.

IUMI hull committee chair Ilias Tsakiris says the market is returning to a “soft environment” while the overall premium base continues to rise.  

Premium increased about 3.5% to $US9.67 billion ($14.63 billion) as the value of the global fleet grew 4% to $US1.54 trillion ($2.33 trillion).

Offshore energy sector premium fell 7.9% last year to $US4.34 billion ($6.56 billion) amid depressed oil prices, competitive pressures and growing capacity.

IUMI facts and figures committee chair Jun Lin says the marine insurance sector is relatively stable but faces some strong headwinds.

Geopolitical and trade tensions are creating uncertainty and an ageing global fleet presents rising challenges, from machinery failures to increased maintenance demands and seafarer wellbeing. 

“Claims were relatively benign in 2023 and 2024 but this year has seen an uptick particularly in groundings, large vessel fires and, of course, war-related losses,” he said.