The impact of the global financial crisis on efficiency and productivity of insurance companies in China

This study examines how the Global Financial Crisis (2007-2008) affected the efficiency and productivity of insurance companies in China. Using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), we decompose technical, pure technical, and scale efficiency across 15 major Chinese insurance companies representing approximately 85% of the market. The Malmquist productivity index is employed to analyze dynamic productivity changes. The results reveal significant variations in crisis impact across different organizational characteristics, with large insurers experiencing a more pronounced decline in scale efficiency (dropping from 0.997 to 0.915) but maintaining stable technical efficiency. Medium-sized companies demonstrated greater operational resilience, while smaller companies exhibited superior scale optimization during market turbulence. Central state-owned insurance companies showed larger efficiency gaps during the financial crisis (0.112) compared to joint-stock companies (0.078), but both ownership types demonstrated effective recovery mechanisms. The findings contribute to understanding how organizational size and ownership structure influence crisis adaptation capabilities in emerging insurance markets, providing insights for enhancing resilience during financial market disruptions.