Prudential's (2378) annual premium equivalent sales in Asia slumped by 24 percent year-on-year to US$986 million (HK$7.69 billion) during the first quarter. APE sales halved from a year ago in the Hong Kong market, where pandemic-related restrictions were implemented before other regions and mainland tourist arrivals plunged.
Mainland APE sales shrunk 19 percent year-on-year, but the sales environment has begun to normalize according to more recent data, the company said.
Prudential expects it will continue to see a challenging sales environment in the second quarter as social distancing measures have been stepped up in other Asian markets.
However, products generating around two-thirds of Asian markets' APE sales have been able to be sold virtually, the company said.
Meanwhile, Ping An Insurance's (2318) total premium income fell 3.15 percent year-on-year to 321.2 billion yuan (HK$350.5 billion) during the first four months this year, with premium income from life insurance dropping 8.9 percent from a year ago to 210 billion yuan.
In April, life insurance premiums grew 2.95 percent from a year ago to 35.86 billion yuan.
China Pacific Insurance (2601) said its gross premium income amounted to 102.76 billion yuan for the first four months, almost stable compared with a year ago.
