China's Property-Liability Insurance Market: Characteristics, Trends, and Efficiency by Ownership

Abstract

China’s insurance market is one of the most important emerging markets in the world. With over 1.7 trillion RMB (284 billion USD) in premiums written in 2013, China has become the fourth largest insurance market in the world. Property-liability insurance has a longer history in China and accounts for more than 36% of market share. This article discusses the characteristics, trends, and efficiency of China’s property-liability insurance market; in particular, it focuses on the difference in insurance operations and efficiency between domestic insurers and foreign insurers.