Ping An Insurance profits soar in Q1

Ping An Insurance (Group) Co., one of China's major insurers, said on Monday its net profits rose 46.2 percent in the first quarter of 2014 from a year earlier. The company's net profits stood at 10.81 billion yuan (1.77 billion U.S. dollars), said a statement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The insurer's total assets hit 3.66 trillion yuan at the end of March, up 9 percent from the beginning of the year. Premiums from life insurance hit 91.8 billion yuan in the first quarter, up 22.7 percent year on year. Meanwhile, Ping An Bank saw its net profit up 40.8 percent year on year to 5.05 billion yuan in the first three months.