Oman Insurance Report Q3 2012

The Oman Insurance Report considers the prospects for both life and non-life insurers in the country. As of May 2012, it is clear that conditions have been mixed for the major players in both segments. In the non-life segment, it appears that Al-Ahlia, the local subsidiary of RSA, has been gaining market share at the expense of the other companies. In the life segment, National Life & General Insurance, the main subsidiary of ONIC Holding has achieved substantial growth in Q112 relative to Q111: this has been thanks to greater sales of health insurance products, both in Oman and the UAE. Other companies have reported declining premiums – in some instances as a result of a deliberate policy to focus on profitability rather than growth. Meanwhile, earnings from investments – for most companies at least – appear to have improved dramatically in comparison with the very difficult period that was Q111.

Overall, though, nothing has happened to change BMI’s view that Oman will likely remain home to an insurance sector that is small, fragmented and highly competitive. Over recent years, premiums in both segments have been growing at low double-digit rates. Retention rates are low (often well below 50%). Over the last year or so, motor-related claims have been unacceptably high. The insurers remain vulnerable to volatility in the underdeveloped financial markets of Oman and other countries in the region.

Taking the longer-term view, we do not see obvious catalysts for an increase in either non-life penetration or life density. Meanwhile, Oman’s insurance sector continues to compare unfavourably with its peers in other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Twenty-one companies, including 10 local groups, are competing for total premiums that are still less than US$700mn per annum. As is the case in the rest of the region, none of the local companies have the benefits of economies of scale, nor, with the clear exception of al-Ahlia which is an affiliate of global non-life major RSA Insurance, are any owned by major shareholders that have a clear competence in insurance. In most countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), small local groups tend to focus exclusively on non-life lines (particularly the ‘basic’ areas such as motor and home/contents insurance). Oman is unusual in that most of the local groups are composite insurers. Even al-Ahlia offers group life products. The regulatory regime dates back only to 2004. To date, Oman’s insurance sector has not participated in the growth of takaful – a key factor in the expansion of the much larger industries in the UAE and Saudi Arabia: nevertheless, the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has given an in-principle approval to the establishment of the Sultanate’s first shari’a-compliant insurance company.

A strength is that the market is clearly open to foreign players. Majors that are present include AXA Gulf, Chartis and, since October last year (through its purchase of Compagnie Libanaise d’Assurance), Zurich, as well as MetLife ALICO. LIC and New India are serving Indians who live and work in Oman. There are also offshoots of much smaller firms based in the UAE and Lebanon. For the time being, though, the exclusive distribution agreement signed in April 2012 between HSBC Middle East and Zurich does not extend to Oman.

Over the last quarter, BMI has made the following changes:

The analysis incorporates BMI’s latest forecasts for Oman’s economy, including details in relation to auto sales and trends in the healthcare sector.

The analysis incorporates comments on developments in Q112, most of which were published by the various insurance companies in May 2012.