Insurance stocks collectively advanced. At the time of writing, AIA (01299) rose 3.55% to HK$86; China Life (02628) increased 2.86% to HK$33.1; PICC GROUP (01339) climbed 2.47% to HK$6.65; New China Life Insurance (01336) was up 2.23% at HK$61.8; and Ping An (02318) gained 2.06%, trading at HK$69.5.