Ten weeks into the year and never a dull moment. Pondering the remaining 42 weeks and beyond, where will value be found? We know that "my pal Warren" is on the prowl waist high in Berkshire Hathaway cash to invest, and he is on record as chomping on the bit to do so. Just this morning it was reported that Buffett had closed a $9 billion deal to buy Lubrizol Corp. (LZ), the Wickliffe, Ohio-based maker of engine lubricants.

More evidence of this abounds: Wednesday March 2, (Reuters) - US-based Berkshire Hathaway aims to enter the Indian insurance sector as a corporate agent of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance.

This is part 1 of a series examining the insurance market for expansion, stock valuations, potential risks and opportunities, excluding health care focused companies, a whole other breed of enterprise.

This post is part of a 12-article feature on the best bets for investing in China. To see all the other recommendations in this special report, click here.

"The big story behind China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC) is still the demographic one, as the population of China urbanizing and aging," says Paul Goodwin, a specialist in Asian stocks.

In his Cabot China & Emerging Markets Report, the advisor offers a fascinating look into the company, reviewing its firm's history, it's current state and assessing its future outlook.

Those surprised by the market's strength in recent weeks should be even more impressed with the rebound in China, where both their market and economy have proven among the most resilient in the world.

Global specialist Nicholas Vardy adds, "While the US markets are rising, Asian stocks are on fire." ETF expert Paul Tracy adds, "China funds have screamed to the top of the performance charts."

In large part, this strength is due to the country's stimulus program. Tracy points out, "To combat the sagging global economy, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao orchestrated a massive 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus package.

"China has been my top market recommendation since late in 2008, and it remains so today," says global investing expert Yiannis Mostrous.

In The Silk Road Investor he explains, If the country's stimulus package works (especially on the infrastructure front) expect the Chinese economy to have a V-shaped recovery this year." Here's a looks at two of the advisor's favorites -- China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC) and Chunghwa Telecom (NYSE: CHT).

"The sustainability of such a recovery will depend on the status of the global economy, though. If the global economy and the credit/banking crisis don't improve by this time next year, the Chinese economy will have more serious problems to deal with.

"For now, though, China seems to be headed for GDP growth of around 8% this year, which is nothing to fret about in the current economic environment.

China Petroleum & Chemical (NYSE: SNP), an energy and chemical company based in the People's Republic of China, closed at $98.35. WTI Crude Futures are down 0.33% to $123.82 according to Bloomberg. SNP overall option implied volatility of 46 is below its 26-week average of 57 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price risk.

China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC) offers products and services, including individual life insurance, accident insurance and health insurance in China. LFC closed at $62.37. LFC overall option implied volatility of 42 is below its 26-week average of 50, suggesting decreasing price risk.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

MOST NOTEWORTHY: DPL Inc, IAC/InterActiveCorp, F5 Networks, Community Health and Parametric Technology were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Baird upgraded DPL Inc (NYSE: DPL) to Outperform from Neutral following better-than-expected guidance.
  
• Citigroup upgraded IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI) to Buy from Hold as they believe HSN's turnaround, Lending Tree's stabilization and Ask's profitability ramp should drive EBITDA growth acceleration in 2008. The company was also upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Lehman following IAC's better-than-expected Q3 report.
  
• Citigroup upgraded shares of F5 Networks Inc (NASDAQ: FFIV) to Buy from Hold, as they believe now is the time to buy the stock with sentiment at a low-point heading into an attractive 2008 product cycle.
  
• Stifel raised its rating on Community Health Systems Inc (NYSE: CYH) to Buy from Hold based on improved visibility from detailed 2008 guidance.
  
• Kaufman upgraded Parametric Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: PMTC) to Buy from Hold based on an impressive quarter and favorable industry trends.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• China Life Insurance Company Limited (NYSE: LFC) was upgraded to Peer Perform from Underperform at Bear.
  
• The Pep Boys - Manny, Moe & Jack (NYSE: PBY) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.
  
• JP Morgan added Nalco Holding Company (NYSE: NLC) to its Focus List.
  
• RBC upgraded Newmont Mining Corporation (NYSE: NEM) to Sector Perform from Underperform.

China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC) has just announced record profits for the first half of 2007, and Jim Trippon. Indeed, in The China Stock Digest, he explains, "Profits doubled its profits over the same period a year ago."

China , he notes, Life attributes the huge gains to higher premiums and outstanding returns on investment earnings.

Meanwhile, he adds, the company continues to expand its services and its affiliations. Most recently, he observes, China Life received permission from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) to offer investment-linked insurance products.

The advisor states, "In view of China's bullish stock market, the investment-linked product could contribute new revenue streams to China Life's future performance.

"The company has enjoyed sharp increases in non-insurance revenues, specifically its return on various investments. The company's investment gains rose 152% to more than $3 billion in 2006.

"In a major move into the pension field, China Life is rumored to be ready to pay as much as $500 million for a 60% stake of Zhongcheng Trust & Investment Corp. In another development, AXA insurance announced that it was preparing to sell its Taiwanese insurance unit to China Life.

"Premiums for China Life were up 8.9% for the first six months of the year. We remain positive about this company's long-term prospects as a beneficiary of China's growing economy."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com features the latest investment ideas and market commentary from the financial newsletter community.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

China Life Insurance Co. (NYSE: LFC) is the favorite conservative stock for 2007 from Jim Trippon, editor of The China Stock Digest. The advisor, who maintains permanent offices in China, says, "Although the stock has performed strongly in 2006, we still see strong gains ahead.

"China Life is China's largest insurance company; it has written more than 48 million individual and group policies and has a huge sales force of 640,000 agents who operate in 9,300 field offices throughout the world's most populous country.

"China Life first caught our attention as a potentially huge growth engine in December 2005 with its announcement that it had been given the go-ahead by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) to set up a pension business as it moves to expand into the fast-growing corporate annuities sector.

"This is a major breakthrough in a nation of 1.3 billion prospects who can no longer rely on the government for their pensions. CIRC expects the country's corporate annuity net premiums to grow by 100 billion Yuan, or US$124 million, annually for the next several years. We expect China Life's historical statistics to move up rapidly as its large sales force is tasked to move aggressively into pension funding."

To see Jim's favorite speculation for 2007, click here.