By Carlos Pallordet

May 1 - (The Insurer) - European P&C stocks outperformed their U.S. counterparts in April amid broad market declines driven by lingering trade tensions.

European stocks recorded a second consecutive monthly decline in April as investors grappled with volatility from shifting U.S. trade policies.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 1.2% over the month, adding to a 4.2% slide in March.

Among regional markets, France's CAC 40 was down 2.5% while the UK's FTSE 100 fell 1.0%.

Despite ongoing recessionary concerns, Germany’s DAX emerged as a regional outlier, climbing 1.5% in April on increased government spending and a strong current account balance.

Across the Atlantic, the S&P 500 benchmark slipped 0.8%, after plunging 5.8% in March and 1.4% in February.

The month opened with markets reeling from the Trump administration's "Liberation Day" measures on 2 April, which initially proposed blanket 10% tariffs on all imports and reciprocal tariffs on specific countries with larger trade deficits.

U.S. and European indexes plummeted in response to the announcement as investors priced in potential supply chain disruptions and inflationary impacts. However, there was a partial recovery in mid-April after the White House granted most trading partners a 90-day tariff reprieve.

This policy shift, along with corporate earnings reports that largely exceeded expectations, helped the Stoxx 600 recover over half its losses through April's final week, with seven consecutive positive sessions marking its longest winning streak since January.

Shares in Europe-listed P&C (re)insurers continued to outperform, with the sector-specific Stoxx 600 Insurance index rising 1.3% in April. It is up 17.2% for the year-to-date, compared to a 3.9% increase for the broader Stoxx 600 benchmark.

Of the 22 listed European (re)insurers tracked by The Insurer, 13 ended the month in positive territory, with four recording gains of 5% or more.

Admiral led the gains among Europe-listed (re)insurers, with the stock climbing 14.3% in April. This resulted in a 23.2% year-to-date gain, the fifth highest in the European cohort.

The carrier had been among the laggards in 2024, losing 1.5% over the past year.

Spanish insurer Mapfre recorded the second-highest monthly gain with its shares rising 10.3%.

The strong performance followed the release of first-quarter results that showed its non-life combined ratio improved by 1.7 percentage points to 94.1%, despite an 85 million euro ($96.5 million) hit from January’s California wildfires for Mapfre Re.

Norwegian insurer Protector Forsikring and French carrier Axa were also among the most strongest performers in April with gains of 7.8% and 5.5%, respectively.

Among the big four continental reinsurers, Scor added 3.6% while German peers Munich Re and Hannover Re rose 3.3% and 2.8%, respectively. In contrast, Swiss Re lost 1.5%.

The trio of Lloyd’s blue-chips were all down for the month, with Lancashire shedding 2.6%, Beazley losing 4.6% and Hiscox falling 6.5%.

London-listed Conduit Holdings rebounded by 3.5% in April but still remains the weakest performer in the European cohort for the year-to-date with a 26.5% loss.

Lancashire is the only other company trading lower on a year-to-date basis, with the shares down 14.6% since the beginning of the year.

Hiscox also remains a laggard over the year-to-date, having eked out a gain of only 1.5% over the period.

Irish carrier FBD Holdings was the most significant faller in April with its shares down 10.1%.

THE PICTURE IN THE US

U.S. P&C insurance stocks lagged the broader market, with the sector-specific S&P 500 Insurance benchmark falling by 5.3% in April, following gains of 1.7% in March and 7.1% in February.

Of the 41 carriers in the cohort, 29 recorded falls in April, with 12 slumping by 5% or more during the month.

Kemper recorded the most significant decline, closing down 11.6% for the month, followed Hamilton Insurance Group, down 10.8%.

Kinsale Capital, also closed the month down over 10%, as the stock slumped in response to lower-than-expected premium growth of 8% in the first quarter.

Meanwhile, shares in insurtech Hippo lost 9.5% in April while International General Insurance fell 8.4%.

Specialty commercial insurer RLI shed 7.9% as it reported a 3.8 point deterioration in its combined ratio for the first quarter, mostly driven by its casualty segment.

Among large-cap U.S.-listed carriers, AIG and Arch decreased by 6.2% and 5.7%, respectively.

Chubb fell 5.3% with the carrier reporting a 9.7 point deterioration in its combined ratio to 95.7% in the first quarter.

At the other end of the spectrum, Heritage Insurance skyrocketed 31.1% in April, following a surge of 22.7% in the previous month. Shares in the Floridian insurer, which recently launched of a new streamlined organisational structure, are up 56.2% since the start of the year.

BROKERS IN THE RED

April saw significant share price declines among intermediaries, which had performed strongly since the start of the year.

Ryan Specialty slumped 11.3% in the month and is up now only 2.1% since the start of the year.

Meanwhile, Aon shed 11.1%, leaving it in negative territory on a year-to-date basis.

Brown & Brown was also down 11.1% for the month.

Among the larger brokers, Arthur J Gallagher lost 7.1% in April but remains the best performer on a year-to-date basis with a 13.0% rise over the period.