China Life Insurance, the country’s largest insurer by premiums, announced that first-half net profits are up 29% year-on-year under Chinese accounting standards due to gains in the value of securities holdings, the Wall Street Journal reported. However, according to international accounting standards, China Life Insurance’s net profit increased by 15%, matching the median forecasts of four analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires. The insurer said it booked profits of US$220 million from its stock portfolio, helped by rising Chinese stock markets and its decision to shift funds out of fixed-income assets into securities. At the same time, income from premiums declined to US$25.22 billion from US$26.56 billion a year earlier, primarily due to a 54% decrease in premiums from group insurance contracts.
Categories