Qatar Insurance (QIC), the leading insurer in Qatar and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, has reported a net profit of QAR217m ($59.6m) for the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 6% from QAR205m for the corresponding quarter in 2025.
The company said in a statement that it had delivered stable financial results despite a turbulent first quarter marked by geopolitical tensions and the conflict in the Middle East.
Other highlights of QIC’s 1Q2026 financial performance are:
- Gross written premiums (GWP) totalled QAR3.2bn, up by 13% year-on-year
- Insurance service result stood at QAR130m, a significant increase of 70% year-on-year
- Investment income amounted to QAR238m, a 10% year-on-year increase. The return on investment for 1Q2026 was 5.3%, compared to 4.9% in 1Q2025
QIC Group Chairman Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal bin Thani Jasim Al Thani said, “QIC’s financial results in 1Q2026 confirm the resilience of QIC and its strategic direction. In a turbulent first quarter marked by the conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. QIC’s underwriting portfolio continued to generate consistent, stable and reliable returns due to the QIC’s robust diversification strategy of balancing our strong growth business generated in Qatar and the MENA region, with income from our international operations and our investment portfolio, which once again provided a strong contribution to QIC’s results in highly volatile financial markets.
“Our operations, particularly in Qatar and the MENA region, once again successfully served our policyholders, uninterrupted, in a challenging environment, benefiting from our advanced digital transformation and ecosystems.
In addition, AM Best and Standard & Poor’s both affirmed their ‘A-’ financial strengths ratings for QIC with a ‘Stable’ outlook, emphasising the strength of QIC’s balance sheet and our well-diversified business profile.”
Mr Salem Al Mannai, CEO of QIC Group, said, “While the year started promising with declining inflation and strengthening growth, the open conflict between the USA, Israel and Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz reversed these developments, severely affecting and threatening people’s lives and business across the MENA region, Qatar, as well as the global economy.”
Mr Mannai added, “Despite this challenging first quarter, QIC further expanded its products and services in Qatar, the MENA region, with our presence in Dubai, Oman and Kuwait, and internationally through our Antares Lloyds Syndicate, along with operations in Bermuda, Europe and Asia Pacific.
“Whilst already benefiting from our regional spread, we further built our diversification and strengthened our resilience through a well-balanced product portfolio, generating attractive growth and returns with our personal non-life, life and medical book, and our commercial lines business in Qatar and the MENA region, and internationally in marine and other speciality lines through our reinsurance book.”
Assumptions revised in the wake of ME war
According to QIC’s statement, a challenging first quarter required a revision of QIC’s assumptions for 2026. Following the outbreak of conflict in the Middle East and the disruption of trade flows and energy supply due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, volatility increased once again, with growth expected to slow and inflation projected to rise. According to the IMF’s April 2026 projections, the MENA region is forecast to grow by 1.4% in 2026, down from the 3.7% growth expected for the full year as of October 2025. At the same time, inflation is expected to increase again, although its impact across the MENA region varies significantly, with oil and LNG-exporting countries experiencing a more limited effect compared to oil and LNG-importing economies, where the impact is expected to be more severe.
The global insurance markets started 2026 on a positive note. Competitive pressure intensified further in both the primary insurance and reinsurance markets, as well as in retrocession, with risk capacity widely available following the hard market years marked by tighter conditions and lower-than-average losses from natural catastrophes in 2025. QIC benefitted from these market conditions in both international and regional markets. In personal and commercial insurance, QIC experienced improved reinsurance pricing and more flexible terms, while in reinsurance and international markets, the low loss environment and the favourable conditions established in prior years supported sustainable margins into 2026.
In the second part of 1Q2026, market conditions changed dramatically with the onset of the Middle East conflict. Across the region, demand weakened, first affecting highly exposed specialty lines, including marine and aviation, as well as tourism-related activities. In addition, consumption is also seen to contract in motor insurance and some property lines as consumers cut back on spending, Mr Mannai said.
Underwriting
Despite the ongoing challenges, overall in 1Q2026, QIC generated 56% of QIC’s GWPs in its domestic and MENA operations, with 44% stemming from its international business.
QIC continues to pursue its priorities of strategically enhancing its current well balanced and diversified risk profile with disciplined growth coupled with strong underwriting performance in select lines of business. With its digital edge, QIC continues to invest in and expand its personal lines business in the MENA region. This segment also demonstrated its robustness during the first quarter, as consumers reduced their movements and increasingly relied on the fully digitised ecosystem offered by QIC’s all-in-one app.
Investments
Investment income amounted to QAR238m in 1Q2026, a 10% year-on-year increase. QIC’s investment portfolio, which is mainly composed of a stable and conservative combination of bonds, cash, equities and real estate, amounted to assets under management of QAR18bn on 31 March 2026, up from QAR17.7bn at the end of Q1 2025.