PriyaPatel
TLDR:
- Ping An’s net profit for 2023 fell to a 5-year low of 85.67 billion yuan.
- The value of new business in life and health insurance rose by 36% to 39.26 billion yuan.
Chinese insurance giant Ping An reported a 23% year-on-year decrease in net profit for 2023, falling to 85.67 billion yuan, its lowest in five years. This drop was attributed to setbacks in asset management and technology investment businesses, although the value of new business in life and health insurance saw a significant increase of 36% to 39.26 billion yuan.
Ping An’s operating profit, excluding one-off items and investment portfolio changes, also declined by 20% to 117.98 billion yuan. Despite these challenges, chairman Peter Ma Mingzhe expressed a commitment to pursuing high-quality development in 2024. The company remains focused on its core businesses of insurance, technology, and healthcare.
While Ping An’s core insurance business remained solid, its asset management suffered a significant loss of 19.52 billion yuan, and its technology businesses saw operating profit decrease by 56% to 2.98 billion yuan. Nevertheless, analysts remain optimistic about Ping An’s future growth prospects, particularly in the healthcare sector as China’s ageing population drives demand for related services.
The company’s gross premium income from life and health insurance rose by 5.8% to 498 billion yuan, while its property and casualty insurance unit saw a 1.4% increase to 302.2 billion yuan. Ping An’s share price rose by 2% following the announcement of its financial results, and it will pay a final dividend of 1.5 yuan per share for the 2023 financial year.
