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Singapore’s life insurance industry posted a 20% year-on-year increase in new business premiums for the first half of 2018, totalling SG$2.02 billion.
The industry has built on its strong results last year, when it exceeded SG$4 billion in total weighted new business premiums for the first time, reported Channel News Asia.
Singapore Life Insurance Association (LIA) president Patrick Teow expressed confidence that 2018 will be another good year for the industry.
“This year’s midpoint is already much higher than last year’s midpoint, so, if momentum continues, we will cross SG$4 billion for sure,” he told reporters on Monday.
The year-to-date total sum assured also increased by 19% to SG$66.3 billion in June 2018, showing an increase in protection.
“We are happy that protection for people is increasing and that tells us that people are taking a serious look at their financial health,” Teow said.
LIA pointed out that consumers’ preferences have slightly changed, from participating products, to both non-participating products and investment-linked products, mostly due to new products launched by insurers, as well as improving economic conditions.
However, despite the positive results, Teow notes that some challenges lie ahead.
“We are still optimistically cautious that this momentum will continue to run through, but we are not isolated from what is happening in the market right now, with the trade war and how it will pan out,” he said.
