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China insurance sector has registered 10 to 15 percent revenue growth for several consecutive
years. Total income from premiums is likely to top US$20 billion in 2001.
By 2005, the total value of China insurance premiums is expected to reach $33.82 billion, constituting 2.3 percent of the total gross domestic product value. The average premium per person is estimated to reach $27.78.
At present there are 18 total branches of exclusively foreign-owned insurance companies and JV insurance companies in China either already in operation or preparing to launch operations. There are also 201 foreign representative offices in China that belong to 17 countries and 113 regions, many of which have already applied to the China Insurance Regulatory Commission to open insurance businesses in China.
[Source: 2001 Yearbook of China's Insurance]
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A Brief History Of China's Insurance
The current largest insurers in the world including American Insurance Group (AIG) of United States, were founded in Shanghai in 1919.
Before 1949, China's insurance industry was controlled by maximum foreign companies operating in Shanghai. Most other insurers were large foreign companies that left China entirely after 1949, though some retreated to Hong Kong.
From 1949 to 1976, the insurance industry in China essentially ceased to exist. Few Chinese owned personal property, and almost all businesses enterprises were government-owned and "self-insured."
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