Beazley has reported a 7% increase in its insurance premiums to $1.48bn (£1.12bn) during the first quarter, in what the insurer has described as a “solid” start to the year.

The latest insurance premiums figure was up from $1.38bn (£1.1bn) in Q1 last year.

In its latest trading statement, Beazley also revealed that its net insurance written premiums jumped by 11% to $1.24bn (£988m), up from $1.12bn (£892.4m) in Q1 2023.

The group’s investment portfolio returned $126m (£100.4m), or 1.2%, in Q1, and suggested that financial markets were buoyed by “resilient” US economic data, with its equity, credit and hedge fund investments all producing strong returns.

“It has been a solid start to the year where we have demonstrated our ability to continue to grow whilst exercising underwriting discipline,” Beazley CEO, Adrian Cox, said. “We are confident of delivering our gross growth guidance for the year of high single digits.

“We remain optimistic about the outlook for our business in 2024 and beyond, focusing on continued, targeted growth and active capital management as the rate environment normalises.”

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