China's insurance regulator has expanded investment options for insurers to help them improvereturns and enhance their operations.
Insurers can invest in stock futures as well as other swaps and forwards contracts to hedge risks from investments, according to rules posted on the China Insurance Regulatory Commission's website yesterday.
They are also allowed to buy wealth management products and asset-backed securities fromdomestic banks, and invest in mature commercial properties in main cities of developed countries, the CIRC said in another set of rules published on Monday.
Under the new rules, insurance companies can lend indirectly to infrastructure projects that have stable cash flows.
Insurers can invest up to 15 percent of their total assets overseas, and can buy privately-held shares of foreign companies in the finance and energy sectors, according to the rules.
Banks and trusts are expected to benefit from the measures as they are now allowed to manage insurance assets for the first time.
"Total investment into these categories (banks and trusts) is capped at 30 percent of total assets," Z-Ben Advisors said in a note yesterday.
"The CIRC is on a comprehensive expansion drive to allow more players to engage more assets in more types of investments, both on- and offshore."
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China's insurance regulator has expanded investment options for insurers to help them improvereturns and enhance their operations.
