If China Life Insurance issues the maximum 1.5 billion A shares, the new shares would account for 5.3% of the company's enlarged share capital, it said.
The company didn't say how much it expects to raise from the share offering, but it said it will use the proceeds to supplement its capital.
The official China Securities Journal reported Monday that China Life Insurance's A shares will start trading on the Shanghai stock exchange on Jan. 9, 2007.
The listing would make China Life Insurance the first Chinese insurance firm to float shares on a domestic exchange.
A shares are yuan-denominated stock that trade on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges. Foreign investors can buy A shares through quotas allotted under the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor program.
China International Capital Corp. and China Galaxy Securities Co. are underwriting the share offering. CITIC Securities Co. is advising on the offering.
