NASSAU, BAHAMAS — J S Johnson has revealed that the second quarter performance of its underwriting segment was impacted by the "perfect storm" of inflation and the hardening of the global reinsurance market.

Alister McKellar, the BISX-listed insurance agent and broker's managing director revealed in a second-quarter interim report that despite an overall 11.75 percent increase in total income for the period ending June 30, an even larger increase in overall expenses of 13.75 percent dragged consolidated net income down from $4,462,935 to $4,270,202 (-4.31 percent).

"Our underwriting segment was affected most by the perfect storm of inflation and the hardening of the global reinsurance market over the period," McKeller noted.

"As mentioned in previous reviews, the risk exposure of the entire Caribbean (and Florida) remains under intense scrutiny by global reinsurers. Some have decided to pull out of the region altogether, while those who remain have substantially increased their rates across the board, raising costs for everyone".

He continued: "As a result, expenses in this segment increased from $28,094,687 to $32,739,634 (+16.53 percent) compared to the same period last year, which drove down overall net income from $611,744 to $512,137 (-16.28 percent).

"While some of the decline in income this period is the result of a non-recurring gain in 2022 that boosted income by nearly $600,000 last period, the overall negative effect of inflation on our financials over the period is clear."

McKeller stated that the company's Agency segment fared relatively better over the period, with only a slight decline in net income for the period, from $3,851,191 to $3,758,065 (-2.42 percent). Results were buoyed by a modest increase of nearly one percent in net revenue from contracts with customers.

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