Insurance industry experts have moved to quell fears that Chinese firms are under threat now that the country's market is opening to foreign firms.

Statistics show that 37 international insurance companies have been given the green light to operate in China and over 60 percent of the country's insurance service providers are joint ventures or solely foreign-funded firms.

American International Assurance, the first foreign insurance player to set up a branch in Shanghai in 1992, has since expanded to other major cities including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Suzhou.

Many other foreign firms are competing for a piece of the cake, say sources at the International Conference on Life Insurance and Risk Control in the northern port city of Tianjin.

Sun Life Everbright Life Insurance Co., Ltd. the first foreign insurer to enter the north China market, is set to open its Beijing branch next year.

Following the input of international capital, China's insurance industry was set to undergo strategic reforms in its management, said Sun Bing, general manager of New China Life Insurance Co., Ltd.

"We can learn from the rich experience and state-of-the-art management know-how of our foreign counterparts," said Sun, "They can help us improve our management and services and together we can nurture a bigger market."

Jiang Shengzhong, a professor with the Tianjin-based , believed foreign players would bring new products, greater competition and in the long run, a bigger and more mature market.

While local firms tried to adapt to international practices, many Nankai Universityforeign players sought to cement their foothold in the world's most populous nation by catering to local needs and customs, said Chen Deren, president and chief executive of Sun Life Everbright.

Statistics from the industry indicate that China collected 296.8 billion yuan (US$35.9 billion) of premiums in the first nine months of 2003, nearly 70 percent of which were from life insurance.

By the end of September, the country's insurance market was worth 832.66 billion yuan (US$100 billion), a figure experts predict would exceed one trillion yuan (US$120 billion) by year end.

(Xinhua News Agency November 12, 2003)