SHANGHAI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. Wednesday announced that its net profit rose 31.9 percent year on year in the first half of this year to 64.8 billion yuan (9.5 billion U.S. dollars).

For the January to June period, the value of Ping An's new business in life and health insurance stood at 38.76 billion yuan, up 0.2 percent, the insurer said at a press conference.

Profit from Ping An's business in financial and medical technology rose 6.4 percent to 4.6 billion yuan and profit from its banking arm grew 6.5 percent to 13.4 billion yuan.

Ma Mingzhe, Ping An's chairman and CEO, said the majority of the insurer's business has switched from corporate to personal in recent years.

"This structural change has laid a foundation for long-term and sustainable development for Ping An," he said.