China Life says virus will dent insurance industry

Wang Bin, chairman of China Life Insurance Company (2628) expects the coronavirus pandemic to adversely impact the first-quarter results of insurers this year, adding uncertainty to the company's full-year performance.

Wang said the company will improve sales and services online. He predicted that the mainland insurance market will still record the fastest growth in the mid- to long-term.

Zhang Di, general manager of the investment management department, said overseas investments take up less than 2 percent of its total investment. These are mainly active investments.

The insurer's net profit last year expanded by 4.25 times from a year ago to 57.89 billion yuan (HK$63.29 billion), with new business value growing by 18.6 percent to 58.7 billion yuan.

Shares of the company dipped by 0.53 percent to HK$15.14 as of 3 pm.