Hull and machinery underwriters will continue to register losses unless rates rise further, an insurer warned the International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) conference.

IUMI’s Facts and Figures committee had earlier reported a 0.2% upturn in overall industry hull premium in 2019 which amounts to $6.9bn in total

Rama Chandran, who chairs the IUMI Ocean Hull Committee, described the upturn as “disappointing”.