Insurance overhaul launched

The China Insurance Regulatory Commission will begin thorough investigations of the country's insurance companies this month to promote growth in the fledgling insurance market, state media reported. The three-year project aims to examine legal compliance and internal control in the insurance industry, with an initial focus on commercial bribery and illegal practices. On the inspection list are China's largest non-life insurance company, PICC Property and Casualty Company; China's largest commercial insurance company, China Life Insurance Company; Ping An of China and China Pacific Insurance Corporation, among others. Revenue premiums have grown by about 30% on average each year over the last two decades, reaching US$59.36 billion in 2005, while insurance assets hit US$183.4 billion.