OREANDA-NEWS. February 10, 2016.  Fitch Ratings has published a dashboard on the London insurance market, summarising the outlook for the sector.

Fitch expects that a significant proportion of (re)insurance classes will experience further price falls in 2016. The low level of major claims activity has intensified competitive pressures, particularly in short-tail lines, and Fitch expects the weakening trading environment to continue. However, there have been recent signs that the speed of rate decreases may be slowing and there have been some small rate increases in some classes, particularly on specialty lines.

Despite the pricing pressures, capitalisation in the London market is at a record high and Fitch believes that most London market insurers' balance sheets would be able to withstand a sizeable catastrophic loss occurring within the next 12-18 months.

The dashboard includes Fitch's latest update on important market developments, including the continued appetite for M&A as well as the continued pricing pressures and the development of cyber insurance.