Core Viewpoint - The 2024 life insurance industry has seen a decline in employee compensation and a historical low in the salary-to-premium ratio, indicating potential challenges in operational efficiency and profitability [2][14]. Group 1: Salary and Premium Ratio Analysis - In 2024, the total employee compensation in the life insurance industry was 108.5 billion yuan, a decrease of 4.6% year-on-year, with a salary-to-premium ratio of 3.4%, down 0.5 percentage points, marking a 15-year low [2][14]. - The "TOP7+1" companies (including major players like China Life and Ping An) had a salary-to-premium ratio of 3.3%, which is significantly lower than that of small and medium-sized insurance companies, which stood at 3.7% [17][18]. - The average salary-to-premium ratio for 70 life insurance companies over the past five years was 4.0%, with a median of 4.9%, and 11 companies exceeding 10% [5][28]. Group 2: Impact on Return on Equity (ROE) - The salary-to-premium ratio has a significant negative impact on a company's ROE, with each 1 percentage point increase in the ratio leading to a 0.37 percentage point decrease in ROE [24][25]. - The empirical model constructed to analyze this relationship included variables such as company size and channel type, confirming the negative correlation between salary-to-premium ratio and ROE [24][25]. Group 3: Historical Trends - The salary-to-premium ratio has shown a declining trend since 2018, with a notable acceleration in the decline for small and medium-sized insurance companies since 2019 [16][18]. - The ratio increased from 4.2% in 2010 to a peak of 5.3% in 2015, followed by a steady decline to the current levels [16][18]. Group 4: Employee Compensation Insights - The life insurance industry employed approximately 345,000 individuals in 2023, with an average compensation and benefits level of 330,000 yuan [10][22]. - The fluctuation in employee numbers has shown a slight decline, while average compensation has seen minor increases over recent years [10][22].