China tightens insurer reporting on holdings abroad
By Samuel Shen
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese regulators are requiring insurers to submit daily reports on their overseas investments, tightening oversight of the sector as concerns mount over the global financial crisis, two insurance executives said on Thursday.
The China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) from Oct. 1 began requiring detailed daily reports on how much individual insurers have invested abroad and which securities they have bought, said the executives, who are directly involved in regulatory reporting and declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Previously, Chinese insurers including industry leaders China Life (601628.SS) (2628.HK) and Ping An (601318.SS) (2318.HK) were only required to submit broad information to regulators on a monthly or quarterly basis, they said.
CIRC spokesman Zhang Zhongning declined to comment.
The tighter scrutiny coincides with rising concern about the global financial crisis, after the U.S. government bailout of insurance giant AIG (AIG.N) and Ping An's posting of a $2.3 billion loss on its investment in Dutch-Belgian financial services group Fortis (FOR.AS) (FOR.BR).
"The government is obviously worried that the crisis might hurt Chinese insurers," said Hong Jingping, analyst at China Merchant Securities.
She played down the potential dangers of overseas exposure for Chinese insurers, however, stating that the slumping domestic stock market, which has lost about two-thirds of its value over the past year, was of greater concern.
"So far, Chinese insurers have limited investments overseas," she said.
China currently allows insurers to invest up to 15 percent of their assets overseas under the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) scheme.
The government last month urged insurers to keep a close eye on the unfolding financial turmoil and to take protective steps against excessive risks.
The country's five major listed insurers hold no bonds linked to failed investment bank Lehman Brothers, while China Life, Ping An and China Pacific Insurance Group Co (601601.SS) had not invested in bonds linked to AIG, the Shanghai Securities News reported on Sept 18.
(Editing by Edmund Klamann)
