Ping An cleared for overseas investments

Ping An insurance group has been given official clearance to become China's first insurer to invest in overseas markets, China's foreign exchange regulator announced. Four months after restrictions were relaxed, The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) said it had approved Ping An's US$1.75bn investment quota, close to the amount the company raised last year in an initial public offering. The approval clears the way for Ping An, China's second biggest insurer, to buy such assets as bonds and money market instruments in overseas markets, helping the company improve investment returns on its forex holdings.