Insurance premium income dips in Jan-May

Premium income in the nation’s insurance sector dropped 5.9 percent year-on-year to 1.9 trillion yuan ($286 billion) during the first five months of the year, as authorities stepped up regulation to defuse financial risks, according to official data. Property insurance firms posted a 15.3-percent increase, but life insurance companies, which account for over 70 percent of the total premium income, registered a 11.5-percent dip, data from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission showed. Outstanding investment by insurers reached 15.5 trillion yuan as of the end of May, up 4.2 percent from the start of the year.