Allianz Global Insurance Report 2026: World Premiums Reach EUR 6.9 Trillion, Health Fastest-Growing at 12.3%

Allianz Research released its authoritative Global Insurance Report 2026 on May 28, 2026, providing the most comprehensive annual assessment of the global insurance industry's size, trajectory, and structural outlook. The headline finding: global insurance premiums grew by 7.1% in 2025 to reach EUR 6.9 trillion, adding EUR 456 billion to the premium pool — a solid result that, while moderating from the exceptional 9.4% recorded in 2024, remained comfortably above the ten-year compound annual growth rate of 5.6%.

Life insurance remained the largest segment at EUR 2.861 trillion (+EUR 185 billion in 2025), followed by property and casualty insurance at EUR 2.320 trillion (+EUR 85 billion) and health insurance at EUR 1.688 trillion (+EUR 185 billion). The most dynamic segment was health insurance, which recorded 12.3% premium growth in 2025 — the fastest pace since 2014 — driven by rising medical costs, growing demand for private healthcare protection globally, and expanding coverage in markets like India, China, and Southeast Asia.

Geographically, North America increased its share of global premiums from 42.5% to 46.4% over the past decade, meaning roughly every other euro of global premium is now written in North America — primarily the United States. However, Asia has re-emerged as the life insurance growth engine, with life premiums rising 9.9% in 2025, and China alone expanding by 11.4%. In P&C insurance, North America remained dominant at 52% of global premiums, but growth slowed sharply to 2.2% from 9.7% the prior year as pricing cycles matured.

Critically, the report flags the Iran war as a 'major external supply shock, disrupting energy markets, trade flows and supply chains.' In Allianz's central scenario, global GDP growth is expected to slow to 2.6% in 2026, while Eurozone growth is forecast to fall to just 0.8%. If the conflict is not resolved during the summer months, the report warns of 'additional upward pressure on inflation and a materially worse global growth outlook' — which would further suppress the P&C pricing outlook and test life insurer investment portfolios.

Insurance penetration globally rose only modestly to 7.2% of GDP in 2025 and remains below levels seen a decade ago, with the disconnect most visible in P&C where penetration has stagnated around 2.5% of GDP despite strong premium growth. Health insurance penetration has risen from 1.4% of GDP in 2015 to 1.8% in 2025, making it the relative growth story of the decade.