Reinsurance: “Very positive operational development”: Munich Re expects more profitable business

Frankfurt. After raising its profit target in October, the world's largest reinsurer Munich Re is now even more optimistic. The DAX group expects business to be more profitable throughout 2026, especially in property and casualty reinsurance and special insurance. Munich Re announced this on Thursday.

The reason for the increased confidence is that the burden of major losses remains low. This rose to 646 million euros in the third quarter - after 188 million euros in the same period of the previous year. The most expensive natural disaster was the earthquake in Colombia with damages of around 300 million euros. Overall, however, the damage remained below the long-term average and internal expectations.

If major losses do not increase significantly by the end of the year, the combined ratios are likely to be lower than previously assumed. In property and casualty reinsurance, the ratio should be below 80 percent in 2026 instead of the current level of around 80 percent. In special insurance, the group expects a value below 90 percent instead of the current level of around 90 percent. The further the rates are below 100 percent, the more profitable the business.