Doubt Cast over Foreign Insurers' Future in China

Rapidly expanding Chinese insurance companies are posing a grave threat to their foreign peers, a PwC report has revealed. The 31 foreign insurers surveyed forecast their life insurance's share of the Chinese market to remain at 5% and their property and casualty insurance's share to be 1% by 2013. The percentage was 8.9% and 1.3% respectively in 2005. Some foreign insurers were planning to reassess their distribution channels for bancassurance as more Chinese banks are getting into the business, according to the report. Many firms who entered the Chinese market a long time ago and are not doing well at the moment are reviewing the feasibility of forming partnerships with local insurance companies, said Liu Shuyan, chief actuary of PwC Asia Pacific.

Sources:

http://www.yicai.com/news/2010/11/611560.html

http://finance.sina.com.cn/roll/20101126/13369015899.shtml