Insurance premium rates in Singapore are still low, but last year was good for the industry, according to Aon International.

The general insurance rate in 2017 in Singapore moved between 7.5% and 12.5%. In 2018, the rate will be somewhere between 5 and 10%.

Aon’s market review noted that 2017 was another good year for buyers of insurance in Singapore.

The insurance rate for health and benefits also moved between 5% and 12% in 2017 and is expected to move at the same rate this year.

Even if the attritional marine cargo losses were unusually high, and a number of major fires in the west of the island hit many insurers, rate reductions remained on offer throughout the year.

A trend being observed is that a number of Singapore-based markets looked to guarantee premium income by putting their capacity behind structured portfolios that are still profitable.