BEIJING (Bloomberg) — China's insurance regulator ordered China Life Insurance (Group) Co. and its four state-owned peers to refrain from paying senior executives excessive compensation.

The companies should suspend stock incentives and "strictly" abide by existing rules on senior management's pay, the China Insurance Regulatory Commission said in a statement on its website yesterday.

"It's an arduous task to maintain the stable and healthy development of the insurance industry" as the impact on China of the global recession becomes more evident, the regulator said. Managing senior executives' salaries and enhancing corporate governance is of "great" importance, it added.

The regulator has cut supervisory fees for the nation's insurers and suspended charges on premiums for some rural services for three years starting 2008, aiding the companies as a slumping stock market crimps returns. Investments averaged a 2.1 percent yield for the first nine months, down from 2.4 percent in the first half.

The other four state-run insurers are the People's Insurance Company (Group) of China, parent of the nation's biggest non-life insurer, China Reinsurance (Group) Co., China Insurance International Holdings Co. and China Export & Credit Insurance Corp.