One step away from the World's Top "500"

The famous “Forbes Global 2000” was announced earlier and Ping An was the only Chinese Insurance Company on the list, ranked 10th among China Enterprises and 539th among the 2000 global enterprises, only one step away from the world’s strongest 500.
According to Forbes, the ranking was not only based on sales, but also included profits, assets and market value. Hence, Wal-Mart, which has the largest revenue in the world, was not ranked in the top 10. This is because for every US$1 of revenue, Wal-Mart has less then 4 cents in profit. In contrast, Citigroup has revenue of less than half of Wal-Mart, but its profit is 67% higher and therefore, it is ranked 1st on the list.

Ping An is the second largest insurance company in China and it is recognized as the most “close to the market” company among the insurance industry. Since it was established 17 years ago, Ping An has always been the market pioneer. It develops and adapts by following the market very closely, going international and becoming a well-structured organization. These characteristics help Ping An to develop rapidly and record overwhelming results. Being ranked in Forbes highlights their success and shows that in 2003 Ping An’s sales totaled US$7.57 billion, while profits reached US$280 million, assets held amounted to US$24.5 billion and market capitalization achieved was US$10.7 billion.

“The Forbes Global 2000” is one of the most recognized and famous rankings in the world. Enterprises on the list are of considerable size and influence. Mr Sun Jianyi, Ping An’s Vice Chief Executive Officer, said during the interview that Ping An was honored and delighted to be ranked 539th on the list and it showed that Ping An’s business in recent years had been well recognized. Ping An’s objective is to become one of the leading multiple financial services providers in the world. Ping An’s current goal is to be within the top 500 in terms of market capitalization and the top 400 in terms of service quality within three to five years. The current ranking demonstrates where Ping An stands in relation to its target and provides the hope of realizing that goal.

Ping An’s business has been stable following the opening of the insurance market in China. In 2004, core business of Ping An recorded steady growth. In addition, service provided by Ping An and its brand were well-received in the market. Recently, Ping An was elected as one of the favorite brands by 《People’s Daily》and promoted as an “Honest Business Unit” by the Foundation of Consumers' Rights Protection. Ping An also was elected as the “Most Influential Brand” by Rupert Hoogewerf and Baidu.

Among the 2000 enterprises ranked, 25 of them were Chinese. The two Chinese enterprises ranked within top 100 were PetroChina and Sinopec who ranked 57th and 94th respectively. The other top 10 Chinese enterprises in order of ranking are as follows: PetroChina, Sinopec Corp., China Mobile, Hutchison Whampoa, China Telecom, Bank of China Hong Kong, China Netcom, CNOCC and Sun Hung Kai Property.