Reuters
Manulife Financial Corp saw the number of agents in its China and Vietnam businesses drop in the second quarter to the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2019, due to increased regulation and lingering pandemic challenges, contributing to a decline in sales in the key region. The number of agents in Manulife's "Asia Other" segment, which consists of mainland China, Singapore, Vietnam and other emerging markets, fell to 99,567 in the three months ended June 30, from 114,309 in the previous quarter. Talent shortages that have hit most sectors globally have been exacerbated in some markets in Asia - where Manulife, Canada's biggest life insurer, aims to derive half of all core earnings from by 2025 - by local factors including more stringent regulations.