Research & Analysis

Over the past two months, there have been several noteworthy policy developments that affect the healthcare industry. In July, China launched an unprecedented year-long anti-corruption campaign in the healthcare sector, targeting both hospitals and healthcare companies.

Amid a slowdown in economic growth and reduced domestic consumption, China’s State Council released a 24-point guideline that emphasizes the importance of attracting and utilizing foreign investment to establish what is described as a “new open economic system.” The document, published last month, is essentially a guidebook for other Chinese policymaking bodies which are expected to implement the opinions.

US lawmakers recently returned to Washington after more than a month of working in their home districts and are gearing up for an eventful fall. Multiple must-pass pieces of legislation are looming on the horizon, and lawmakers will try to use these vehicles to legislate on China-related topics.

Traveling between the United States and China has become more common and convenient over the past eight months as both countries eliminated COVID-19 restrictions, relaxed visa policies, and allowed for more flights between the two countries.

President Joe Biden is heading to New Delhi this week for the annual G20 Leaders’ Summit taking place over Saturday and Sunday. It was anticipated that the summit could provide a venue for a meeting between Biden and President Xi Jinping, but Xi is no longer expected to attend.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo held a series of meetings in China over August 28 to 30. The trip follows a series of Cabinet-level visits to China this summer, including by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in July.

US-China bilateral trade in goods saw a sharp contraction during the first half of 2023 after reaching a record high the year prior. The contraction in bilateral trade occurred amid a broader, albeit more modest, contraction in US-worldwide trade in goods, stemming from global and domestic economic woes that have led the WTO, IMF, and World Bank to forecast slower growth for global trade in 2023.

In 2020, the Chinese government sought to rein in real estate developers’ high debt levels with the introduction of the “three red lines,” which imposed borrowing limits on real estate firms. While the move was meant to stabilize the industry, developers and local governments alike have been under financial pressure as developers face declining property sales and local governments see decreasing revenue from land sales.

On August 20, it was reported China had formally established the Central Science and Technology Commission (CSTC) and that the commission hosted its inaugural meeting. The CSTC was created as part of the Party and Government Reform Plan, the principal deliverable at the National People’s Congress held in March.

Over the last couple of months, there have been several noteworthy policy and regulatory updates affecting China’s financial services sector. In July, the CSRC released rules that seek to implement a new system for futures and derivatives trading while the State Council revised regulations to increase supervision of private equity.