US casualty re disguises weakening fundamentals

For many reinsurers US casualty was a safe harbour in a sea of
disappointment at the 1 January renewals.
Despite abundant capacity, there was evidence that underwriters
were beginning to push back on terms that had reached historically
weak levels, as the majority of placements renewed flat.
Where loss experience emerged on underlying portfolios,
reinsurers were able to achieve rate increases on excess-of-loss
(XoL) covers for general liability and, most notably, auto
liability, for which Willis