China and India's State-Owned Reinsurers Adopt Divergent StrategiesFebruary 12, 2012The state-owned reinsurers of China and India have traveled different paths to expansion. With its recent investment in a Lloyd's syndicate, China Reinsurance Group is mapping an international course that leads to Europe, the Americas and Africa.In the year ahead, market observers expect the Chinese reinsurer to be more competitive and to "look outward" more than its Indian counterpart, with sufficient capital reserves and regulatory supports following its first overseas strategic partnership.China Reinsurance (Group) Corp. started operating a special-purpose Lloyd's syndicate this year by forming a strategic partnership with U.K.-based Catlin Group Ltd. to write reinsurance cover for an existing Catlin syndicate. The Chinese state-owned reinsurer earlier said it and Catlin would provide capital for Syndicate 2088, which will have a stamp capacity of about 50 million pounds (US$78.7 million)."As the biggest reinsurance company in China, China Re's strategy is to grow both in the home market and abroad, and to have a greater involvement in international markets," said Chairman Peiyu Li. Setting up Syndicate 2088 and the alliance with Catlin will be a "milestone" in China Re's international strategy, while the new venture will help the reinsurer to gain a better knowledge of Lloyd's and benefit from its worldwide network (Best's News Service, Nov. 8, 2011).It will also increase the company's experience of international reinsurance operations and management and help build a foundation for China Re to grow into an important player in the world reinsurance market, said Li. The company intends to continue its "internationalization" growth strategy by gradually setting up overseas representative offices and branches, and seeks to become a medium-size international reinsurer by 2015 (Best's News Service, Aug. 9, 2011).China Re's plan is to "focus on Asian market growth, with steady business participation in Europe and America, while gradually developing emerging markets like Latin America and Africa by leveraging on its strong capital base and positive international credit ratings," Li said.Currently, about two-thirds of China Re's international business is generated from traditional Asian markets, while the remaining one-third comes from mature markets like Europe and America. This compares with other regional reinsurers, such as Korean Re's business ratios of 43% from Asia and 23% from Europe and America; as well as Japan-based Toa Re's 24% from Asia and 74% from Europe and America, noted the Chinese reinsurer.To further expand in the international market, Li said China Re can either increase the ceding of part of its own reinsurance business to foreign reinsurers, or underwrite part of the ceded reinsurance business from overseas reinsurers in addition to establishing its own overseas branches or subsidiaries, or to expand through mergers and acquisitions.Different from relying on a foreign partner to tap further into the global market, India's state-owned reinsurer -- General Insurance Corporation of India -- entered the overseas market earlier than China Re by opening its own branch offices in London, Moscow, and most recently, Malaysia. It has also developed as a reinsurance solutions partner for the Afro-Asian region, and operated reinsurance programs in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.During the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011, GIC Re reported year-on-year premium growth of 20% to 116.81 billion rupees (US$2.29 billion). Among the total, foreign business accounted for approximately 40.3%, down from 44.7% for the previous year, according to its annual report.In 2010, China Re noted premium income of less than 1.5 billion yuan (US$238 million) from overseas ceded reinsurance business, accounting for 6% of the group's total. Its premium income generated from reinsurance and insurance business during the year totaled 38.13 billion yuan, including 13.82 billion yuan from direct insurance and 24.31 billion yuan from reinsurance. The group had operating income of $38.8 billion in 2010, with total assets and pretax profits of 99.5 billion yuan and 3.06 billion, respectively.When focused on the primary insurance market, China and India are both growth markets, while the Chinese players again are better positioned for global growth, as limited local insurance business size and smaller domestic market base have curbed the Indian companies' expansion ambitions."The Indian insurance market itself is still way under-penetrated, more so than China, and there is still huge room for growth," said Sharon Khor, a Hong Kong-based partner and head of insurance for greater China at Accenture, an international consultant."Unlike China, the number of India's domestic insurers is still rather small, which is dominated by one mega government-owned insurer. Thus the probability of any local insurer in India looking outward is extremely low," noted Khor, who said Indian insurers and the state-owned reinsurer "will likely focus on their domestic market, instead of overseas expansion."Low insurance penetration, a vast population and rapid economic development, however, would continue to provide a largely untapped potential to be explored in India, such as traditional property, engineering and marine classes, liability, oil and energy, aviation, health and nuclear power, GIC Re's chairman and managing director Yogesh Lohiya said earlier (Best's News Service, June 29, 2010).Given the economic situation and the expectation of an insurance growth slowdown, particularly in 2012, Khor said Chinese insurers "will continue to stay focused on their core business in China in the near term," in addition to finding ways to sustain the growth momentum and improve operational productivity and efficiency.The domestic Chinese market still has growth opportunities, which means overseas expansion is "less compelling" where the markets may be more saturated and challenging, especially in the West. "I will not preclude the possibility of Chinese insurers investing in other emerging or developing markets, for example, in Southeast Asia and Africa, or even taking up a minority stake in a foreign financial institution entity in a matured market," said Khor. The China Insurance Regulatory Commission said Chinese insurance companies have steadily implemented a "going global" strategy in the past decade since China joined the World Trade Organization, which has helped them enhance their domestic and international competitiveness.The Beijing-based regulator expects the global financial environment will be positive in the mid to long term, and the domestic health insurance and pension markets will provide more opportunities to foreign insurers (Best's News Service, Dec. 20, 2011).Eight Chinese insurers have set up 27 operating units overseas, while six domestic insurers have established eight representative offices overseas. China Re was jointly founded by the Ministry of Finance of China and Central Huijin Investment Corp. with 15.09% and 84.91% stakes, respectively. It has paid up capital of 36.41 billion yuan.China Re currently has a Best's Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent). GIC Re currently has a Best's Financial Strength Ratings of A- (Excellent).(By Rebecca Ng, Hong Kong news editor: Rebecca.Ng@)CHINA DAIL YIndia's trade deficit widens as import growth outpaces exportsUpdated: 2012-02-10 07:38NEW DELHI - India's trade deficit widened to a three-month high in January as import growth outpaced the climb in exports, the top bureaucrat in the commerce ministry said.Merchandise exports rose 10.1 percent to $25.4 billion last month from a year earlier, Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar told reporters in New Delhi onThursday. Imports gained 20.3 percent to $40.1 billion, leaving a trade deficit of $14.7 billion, he said.A trade gap Khullar said may reach $160 billion in the current fiscal year threatens to revive pressure on the rupee after it tumbled the most in Asia last year. Europe's debt crisis has curbed overseas sales by nations from Thailand to China, and the Reserve Bank of India has signaled interest-rate cuts to shield growth providing inflation slows further."The slowdown in the industrialized nations is affecting demand for India's exports," N.R. Bhanumurthy, a New Delhi-based economist at the National Institute for Public Finance and Policy, said before the report. "That will put pressure on the rupee to weaken."The slowdown in Europe is weighing on exports, Khullar said, adding the current-account deficit may reach 3.5 percent of GDP in the 12 months through March. The next fiscal year will be a tough one for overseas sales, he said.India's government two days ago predicted the weakest economic expansion this year since 2009. GDP will probably rise 6.9 percent in the 12 months through March from a year earlier, it said. Asia's third-largest economy expanded 8.4 percent from 2010 to 2011.Growth has slowed after the reserve bank raised rates by a record amount from 2010 until October last year to fight price gains and as Europe's turmoil and policy gridlock deter investment.The central bank on Jan 24 cut the amount of deposits lenders need to set aside as reserves for the first time since 2009, seeking to ease a cash squeeze and bolster expansion. It left the repurchase rate at 8.5 percent for a second meeting.Thursday's report showed the climb in exports was the fastest in three months. At the same time, it fell short of the pace recorded each month from November 2009 through October 2011.India said it will step up trade with Iran even as international sanctions against the Persian Gulf state over its nuclear program are tightened.India, which buys about $9.5 billion of crude oil annually from Iran, plans to send a trade delegation to Teheran in a bid to boost exports of goods not covered by United Nations restrictions, Khullar told reporters in New Delhi on Thursday."If opportunities emerge" as other nations halt commerce with Iran "then we will snap them up", Khullar said. "We will be mounting a mission to Iran at theend of the month to promote our own exports."India will continue to buy Iranian oil and opposes sanctions on the Islamic Republic from anyone except the UN, Ranjan Mathai, India's foreign secretary, said on Jan 17.India will also keep exporting rice to Iran, its biggest buyer, as the two nations take steps to clear delayed payments and boost trade.The country will maintain shipments of basmati rice at 1 million tons a year, said Vijay Setia, president of the All India Rice Exporters Association.Iranian buyers defaulted on payments for as much as 200,000 tons of rice in the past few months, said Setia in a phone interview. India appointed UCO Bank to open letters of credit in rupees for trade with Iran and that may help exports to continue, he said.Export "terms will be re-written and business will continue", Setia said. Bloomberg News(China Daily 02/10/2012 page17)The second meeting of the Sino-Indian Strategic Economic Dialogue will be held in India in 2012 Securities Times, September 26 from the Development and Reform Commission was informed that the second meeting of the Sino-Indian Strategic Economic Dialogue willbe held in 2012 in India.Blue Book: China and India to carry out the Strategic Economic Dialogue to promote bilateral cooperation in the implementationReuters, January 4, 2012, jointly organized by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Asia Pacific and the Global Institute for Strategic Studies, Social Sciences Documentation Publishing House, 2012"Asia-Pacific Development Report" conference "held in Beijing.The experts analyzed the overall development of the 2010-2011 Asia-Pacific region, predicted in 2012 the trend of development in the Asia-Pacific region, and officially released the 2012 Asia-Pacific Blue Book "Asia-Pacific Development Report (2012).The first meeting of the Sino-Indian Strategic Economic Dialogue held in Beijing on September 26, 2011, which is Asia's two neighbors on their own economic situation, macroeconomic policy and the related fields of industrial policy and pragmatic cooperation, the first exchange and dialogue. China-India relations go beyond the bilateral scope and is increasingly global and strategic significance of the strategic economic dialogue beyond the economic sphere, with the global strategic significance.The Blue Book points out, the context of major concern in India, the first meeting of the Sino-Indian Strategic Economic Dialogue is no doubt focus on resolving India's growing trade deficit in the trade imbalance gradually. However, China and India each other's economic situation and macroeconomic policy dialogue, bilateral "hot spot" into the more widely in relation to the development of each other within the framework of, and not a "stop-gap measures to treat the foot," the way to treat This is indeed an important symbol of the bilateral relations have entered a rational stage of development. At present, the world economic outlook is uncertain, the increased uncertainty in the international political situation, in the context of the United States as the representative of the Western developed countries, economic recovery difficult, as a close neighbor of the two emerging economies through the establishment of the strategic economic dialogue mechanism, strengthen The country's macroeconomic policy coordination, to jointly cope with the problems and challenges in each other's economic development, not only is timely and necessary.The Blue Book also pointed out that the pragmatic cooperation of China and India first strategic economic dialogue between China and India to build a platform, "Sino-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue" wasestablished in April 2009 compared to the former issue is still very limited, Many cooperation from the implementation of the "concept" to "practice".Moreover, the Strategic Economic Dialogue in China and India can develop into a "strategic economic dialogue", is also affected by many factors, but this is undoubtedly the direction of the bilateral efforts.Overall, the 2011 Sino-Indian relations is stable. Indian Navy to strengthen the presence of the South China Sea and India's involvement in the South China Sea disputes event also shows that since 2010 India's stance on China to show the hard-line trend in the further development. India hope to expand cooperation with China on development issues on the one hand, a positive but cautious attitude; the other hand, India has misgivings on the enhancement of the strength of China's development process, as well as the South Asian region. Can be predicted that India's ambivalence will continue to exist in the future for a long period of time, the stable development of and relations between the two countries have a certain impact. Tentatively for India, confrontational behavior, Indian scholars believe that the tough stance taken by India on the issue of close to its core interests seems to have paid off. However, this tentative confrontation is unwise. Hard-won good situation of the Sino-Indian good-neighborly and friendly relations. China's positive attitude to conform to the expectations of India, through the establishment of a strategic economic dialogue mechanism to solve the development problems facing each other, is based on efforts to safeguard the overall interests of a stable and healthy development of bilateral relations. In this regard, the Indian policy-makers should have a clear understanding. The two countries should not only effectively take care of each other's core concerns and do not want to own unreasonable demands imposed on the other side, this requires not only wisdom, skill, need to mind./Foreign Direct Investment in India’s Single and Multi-Brand RetailNew opportunities and developments lie in store for foreign retailersBy Chris Devonshire-Ellis and Ankit Shrivastava, Dezan Shira & AssociatesFeb. 2 – As India has liberalized its single brand retail industry to permit 100 percent foreign investment, we take a look at the regulatory issues and legal structures pertinent to establishing operations in this new dynamic market. That India should be well on the radar for foreign retailers was recently supported by A.T. Kearney, whose 2011 Global Retail Development Index ranks the nation as fourth globally.India’s retail industry is estimated to be worth approximately US$411.28 billion and is still growing, expected to reach US$804.06 billion in 2015. As part of the economic liberalization process set in place by the Industrial Policy of 1991, the Indian government has opened the retail sector to FDI slowly through a series of stepsIndia’s Per Capita Income Rises 16.9%Feb. 1 – India’s average income for the fiscal year 2010-2011 rose 16.9 percent to reach a US$1,000 average for the first time, according to data released by the Central Statistics Office thisweek.“Real GDP growth is outstripping population growth so per capita income has been on the rise,” stated D.K. Joshi, chief economist at Crisil.India Further Liberalizes FDI Policy, Drops Mandatory Lock-In PeriodJan. 26 –The Indian government is loosening its foreign direct investment regulations and is now allowing foreign investors the opportunity to repatriate their original investment before the expiration of a three-year lock-in period from the day it completes its minimum capitalization norm for the sector.While the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion has expressed misgivings about the policy change, the government has contended that this restriction can be done away with if the investor offers an acceptable reason for not making the investment.India Trade Statistics for April-December 2011 Jan. 20 –India’s exports grew by 25.8 percent over the period running from April to December 2011, reaching a total of US$217.6 billion. The Ministry of Commerce informed that over that same time-frame, imports grew by 30.4 percent and were valued at US$350.9 billion, resulting in a negative trade balance of US$133.3 billion.The Ministry also informed that India’s exports for the month of December 2011 were US$25 billion and imports stood at US$37.8 billion – coming out to a negative trade balance of US$12.8 billion.India Sees Credit Rating UpgradeJan. 17 –Moody’s Investor Services has upgraded its rating on India’s long-term government bonds denominated in the domestic currency from Ba l to Baa 3 (from speculative to investment grade). The long-term country ceiling on the overseas currency bank deposits was also upgraded from Ba l to Baa 3 (from speculative to investment grade). Also, Moody’s had upgraded the short-term government bonds denominated in the domestic currency from NP(not prime) to P-3 (from speculative to investment grade). This short-term rating had been upgraded for the first time since it was newly assigned in 1998.India Allows 100% FDI in Single Brand Retail Jan. 11 – The Indian government on Tuesday agreed to allow 100 percent foreign ownership in single brand retail stores, paving the way for international businesses such as Starbucks, Ikea and Adidas to operate independently in the country without having to involve local partners. Foreign single brand retailers were previously limited to 51 percent ownership.Besides the entrance of new companies into the Indian market, the decision is also likely to result in several existing foreign players operating under tie-ups with Indian companies to convert their existing ventures into wholly-owned subsidiaries.External Commercial Borrowings in Chinese RenminbiSept. 29 –Taking into consideration the particular needs of the infrastructure sector, the existing external commercial borrowing(ECB) policy has been reviewed in discussions with the Government of India and it has been decided to permit Indian companies which are in the infrastructure sector –where “infrastructure” is defined under the existing guidelines on ECB – to avail of ECBs in Chinese renminbi (RMB), under the approval route, subject to a yearly cap of US$1 billion until further review.India Set to Overtake Japan as World’s Third Largest EconomySept. 20 – With Japan’s economy in the doldrums and expected to shrink following the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit the country earlier this year, India’s 8 percent growth is likely to see it emerge as the world’s third largest economy this year, in purchasing power parity terms.India currently ranks fourth, with 2010 International Monetary Fund data showing that the Japanese economy was worth about US$4.31 trillion, with India close behind at US$4.06 trillion.ICBC Sets Up Shop in IndiaSept. 20 – China’s most valuable bank – Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) –has become the first Chinese bank to establish itself in India. The bank is planning to start with an investment of US$100 million and aims to lend to corporations and cover sectors where Chinese companies have a presence such as power, telecom and infrastructure. The bank has set up an office in the Bandra-Kurla business district in central Mumbai and has appointed Sun Xiang as CEO for India.Indian Domestic Demand Halves Iron Ore ExportsAug. 22 – India’s iron ore exports fell for the first time last year and have further declined as a result of massive domestic demand. A government policy of promoting nationalism in resources is driving down India’s exports of the commodity and is helping to reduce international prices. To assist with getting enough ore into domestic redevelopment projects, India has raised freight rates and tariffs, including a quadrupling of export taxes for iron ore over the past 12 months. Exports have responded by declining 17 percent.India’s Updated 2011 Foreign Trade Statistics Dec. 7 –The value of India’s exports throughout October 2011 were recorded at US$19.87 billion, good for a 10.82 percent increase over the level of US$17.93 billion during October 2010. The increasing value of exports for the period of April-October this fiscal year was US$179.78 billion against US$123.17 billion over the same stage last year, recording growth of 45.96 percent.India’s monthly imports during October 2011 were recorded at US$39.51 billion, showing a development of 21.72 percent over the level of US$32.46 billion experienced in October last year. The swelling value of imports for the period of April-October this fiscal was US$273.47 billion as against US$208.82 billion over the same period last year, recording an increase of 30.96 percent.India’s Foreign Trade in June 2011ExportsAug. 5 –India’s exports through June 2011 were valued at US$29.21 billion, which was 46.45 percent superior to the level of US$19.94 billion seen in June 2010. On an expanded timeframe, the growing value ofexports for the period April-June 2011-12 was US$79.00 billion against US$54.22 billion over the same period a year earlier –good for a 45.71 percent increase.印度2011年最新对外贸易统计Posted on December 7, 2011 by India Briefing 12.7-2011年10月，印度出口总值创纪录的达到198亿7千万美元，同比2010年10月的179亿3千万美元，增幅达到10.82%。