Mexican Insurance Market Worth US$33.46 Billion: MAPFRE

The premium volume of the Mexican insurance market is US$33.46 billion, according to MAPFRE’s "The Latin American Insurance Market" 2022 report. 

Globally, the insurance sector faced a significant challenge in 2022 as premium (the amount paid to the insurer by the insured) growth struggled to keep pace with rising inflation, exerting considerable pressure on prices and eroding profitability. The data reveals marginal growth, with global premiums inching up from US$6.76 trillion in 2021 to US$6.78 trillion in 2022, indicating a nominal increase of 0.3%, as per the report.

This translated into a premium density of US$853 per capita, a slight dip from the previous year and a penetration rate (premiums/GDP) of 6.8% of GDP, down from 7% in 2021.

However, Latin America witnessed growth in the insurance sector in 2022. Fueled by better-than-anticipated economic performance and proactive measures by regional central banks in response to inflation, Latin America experienced substantial expansion in both the Non-Life and Life Insurance segments. This departure from the global trend, where the Life segment saw a decline, positioned Latin America as a standout performer.

Despite this growth, the Latin American insurance market's share of the global total remained at 2.6% in 2022, even though the region’s economy accounts for about 6% of the global GDP. The penetration rate of insurance showed a slight increase, now standing at 3.01%. This growth reflects improvements in both the Non-Life and Life Insurance segments. From 2012 to 2022, the region’s GDP rose 0.4 percentage points, indicating a gradual but steady expansion in insurance market penetration.

Mexico played a pivotal role in shaping the regional insurance landscape in the analyzed period. In 2022, the country reported total premiums amounting to US$33.46 billion, marking a nominal increase of 4.6%. 

“Assessing profitability through the lens of Return on Equity (ROE), Mexico stood out with an ROE of 21.5%, placing it among the top performers alongside Guatemala, Brazil, Chile, Peru and Colombia,” reads MAPFRE’s report. “These figures underscore the robust financial health of the Mexican insurance sector, demonstrating its ability to generate returns on invested capital.”