The Chinese insurance regulator said it was evaluating the impact on the domestic industry of the current crisis in the U.S. financial market, and is to take active measures to prevent risks and ensure healthy market development in China.

The China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) said in Beijing on Wednesday that it would closely monitor related developments, in order to effectively protect the interests of insurance buyers in China.

On Monday, the fourth largest U.S. investment bank, LehmanBrothers Holdings Inc., filed for bankruptcy protection, and the third largest, Merrill Lynch, was sold to Bank of America Corp. under pressure from regulators.

(Xinhua News Agency September 17, 2008)