PICC (Group) is studying a plan to sell its shares on China's domestic A-share market in 2008, the China Securities Journal reported on Thursday, citing sources familiar with the situation.

The parent company of PICC Property & Casualty Co Ltd, China's top non-life insurer and is 9.9 percent-owned by American International Group, will consolidate assets of its subsidiaries for the Chinese insurer to launch preparations for the group listing, the newspaper said.

The group also has life insurance and asset management subsidiaries.

"If things go smoothly, PICC will be the fifth insurer that listed on the A-share market. The company's initial public offering will be after China Reinsurance," one of the sources was quoted as saying.

The newspaper did not mention a possible size of the share offering.

China's insurance regulator, early this month, gave approval for PICC (Group) to issue up to 10 billion yuan of 10-year redeemable junior bonds, the largest by a Chinese insurance company.

The move, which is designed to speed up the expansion of the insurer, will also help the listing, the newspaper said, citing the sources.

The insurer had net profit of 2.2 billion yuan ($308 million) in 2007 as premiums grew by 31 percent, 6 percentage points more than the industry average, to 96 billion yuan, it said late last month.

Total assets at the end of 2007 were 147.1 billion yuan. ($1=7.142 Yuan)