HK Stock Market Move | Property insurance stocks collectively rebounded, with life insurance companies starting the year strong. Institutions are optimistic about the gradual optimization of the industry's debt costs.

Domestic insurance stocks collectively rose. As of the time of publication, New China Life Insurance (01336) rose by 5.84% to HKD 48.56; China Life Insurance (02628) rose by 4.48% to HKD 26.12; China Pacific Insurance (02601) rose by 3.68% to HKD 34.38; Ping An Insurance (02318) rose by 3.49% to HKD 62.3. On the news front, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission disclosed the insurance industry premium data for the first two months of 2026. Life insurance had a strong start to the year, while short-term pressure was seen in the growth of auto insurance premiums. The original premium income of life insurance companies in January and February increased by 9.7% year-on-year, with monthly growth rates of 13% and 1.2% in January and February respectively, mainly due to the disruption caused by the Chinese New Year holiday in February. Property insurance companies saw monthly premiums increase by 5.8% and decrease by 0.3% in January and February respectively, with auto insurance premiums experiencing a continuous decline for two months. Huachuang Securities pointed out that, recently, due to geopolitical influences leading to market adjustments, the insurance sector also experienced a pullback. Currently, the valuations of most insurance companies are below the 50th percentile over the past ten years, suggesting that bottom value has emerged. In the short term, the performance of Q1 2026 may face pressure due to market volatility; in the medium to long term, with comprehensive regulation and industry efforts, the industry's debt costs are gradually optimized, and the risk of 'interest margin loss' for leading companies is expected to be basically cleared, with the PEV valuation expected to recover to 1x.