Three major Chinese insurers take 80 percent of life insurance premiums

Three major Chinese insurers racked up nearly 80 percent of China's life insurance premiums from January to August, said the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC).

The China Life Insurance Co.,Ltd., the Ping An Life Insurance Co., Ltd. and the China Pacific Life Insurance Co., Ltd. held 78.7 percent of the market, slightly up from the same period last year, statistics from the CIRC show.

Of the 277.85 billion-yuan total premium income of the life sector in the first eight months, Chinese-funded life insurers took 263.5 billion yuan, leaving 5.17 percent of the market to foreign-funded firms, said the CIRC.

Under its commitments to the World Trade Organization, the country fully opened up its insurance industry to foreign funds last year.

Altogether 40 foreign-funded insurance companies had set up 99 branches in China by the end of last year.

The market share foreign firms in Beijing stands 19 percent, Shanghai at 18 percent and Shenzhen at 10 percent.

The PICC (People's Insurance Company of China) Property and Casualty Co., Ltd., the China Pacific Property Insurance Co., Ltd. and the Ping An Property and Casualty Insurance Co., Ltd. accounted for 69.22 percent of the total property insurance premiums -- 104 billion yuan -- from January to August, 5.63 percentage points down from the same period last year.

Source: Xinhua