April 2019

Social Security Coverage Around the World: The Case of China and Mexico

By Francisco Perez‐Arce (Åbo Akademi University - Economics & Statistics), María Prados (University of Southern California), Erik Meijer (University of Southern California; RAND Corporation), Jinkook Lee (University of Southern California - Center for Economic & Social Research; Program on Global Aging, Health & Policy, Center for Economic & Social Research; RAND Corporation) We describe the current state and recent trends in the landscape of social security programs in China, Mexico, and India. A common thread across these countries is the...

China says will guarantee pensions amid warnings of funds drying up

China will “fully guarantee” future pension payments, a government official told reporters, amid warnings from government researchers that funds could run out by 2035. China’s social security system is under increasing strain as a result of a rapidly ageing population and a shrinking workforce. The China Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), a government think tank, said in a report this month that the country’s pension funds could become insolvent by 2035, with a rapidly dwindling workforce unable to support...

China Urgently Needs a National Pension System

The problems in China’s pension system are widely known, but very difficult to solve. The central adjustment system for the basic pension funds for enterprise employees was established on July 1 last year and the system’s annual budget was recently made public. This is a step in the right direction. However, in order to thoroughly resolve the crisis in the pension system, national coordination is imperative. It is an inevitable requirement for the rational allocation of labor resources in...

Foreign insurers gear up to tap China’s $1.6 trillion pensions business – sources

Foreign insurers including Generali and Prudential Plc are in early talks with authorities to enter China’s private pensions sector, people with knowledge of the matter said, as Beijing opens up to overseas companies. Hong Kong-based AIA Group and Manulife Financial are also considering similar moves, they said. Beijing gave approval to the first foreign joint-venture firm to establish a pensions insurance business last month and two of the people said China has been running pilot projects in three provinces involving...

China. Urban pension funds likely to run out by 2035: Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Pension funds in China could run out before workers born in the 1980s retire, according to a report released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences on Wednesday. According to the report, pension funds for urban employees are expected to begin declining from a peak of 6.99 trillion ($1.04 trillion) yuan in 2027. By 2035, there is a possibility of exhausting the accumulated balances, before people born in the 80s retire, the report said. The report also noted that...

China to cut social security contributions

China will cut the share of enterprise contributions to urban workers' basic aged-care insurance from 20 to 16 percent starting May 1, the State Council announced Thursday. Cutting the rates for unemployment and work-related injury insurance will be extended to April 30, 2020, You Jun, vice-minister of human resources and social security, said at a State Council Information Office news conference. The new policies will cut aged-care insurance fees by more than 190 billion yuan ($28.3 billion) and unemployment...

March 2019

Why ageing China won’t overtake the US economy as the world’s biggest – now or in the future

In 2010, China replaced Japan as the world's second-largest economy. Many economists believe it is just a matter of time before China dethrones the United States as the world’s biggest economy – some have argued that it could happen before 2030. They have cited the history of other Asian economies as evidence to back the claim. The nominal per capita gross domestic product of China was just a sixth of America’s in 2018 – a level similar to...

First Joint Venture gets go ahead to develop pension insurance business in China

China has given permission to a joint venture (JV) to establish a pension insurance company in the country, making it the first JV that has gained access to this sector. The JV, Heng An Standard Life, was formed in 2003 and is 50-50 owned by Scotland-headquartered Standard Life Aberdeen and Tianjin TEDA International at the end of 2018. The new entity will be the country's first foreign-funded pension insurance company, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission said Wednesday...

How biomaterials will support China’s ageing population

Chunying Chen remembers the first nanomedicine conference held in China, which took place in 2015. “It was small. Just 500 people,” she says. “Three years later, it had almost tripled in size.” In the past decade, the chemist has also seen her budget for research into how to use nanomaterials to diagnose and treat malignant tumours triple. Her country is investing increasing amounts of money into materials research that relates to health care. Areas such as drug delivery, bone regeneration...

China. Gov’t raises basic pension of seniors

The government has increased basic aged-care pension by 5 percent for retired personnel, according to a news release by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security on Wednesday. The policy, effective Jan 1, is projected to benefit 118 million employees of companies, government departments and public institutions. According to the release, increasing the basic aged-care pension will help secure retired people a happier life against the backdrop of price hike and a sustainable pension insurance fund. Read more...