China’s X-Ray Market to Reach $1.6 Billion by 2017

According to a November report, China’s $1 billion X-ray market is set to reach $1.6 billion by 2017. At that time, China will account for more than 20 percent of global general radiography revenues, which will be equivalent to the combined general radiography revenues of Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Rapid growth in China’s X-ray market has been fueled in part by recent healthcare reforms. In 2009, China’s Ministry of Health announced a $124 billion national investment in healthcare coverage and infrastructure. Since then, clinics and hospitals across China have dramatically increased spending on capital equipment like diagnostic imaging devices. Most of China’s best hospitals are upgrading to expensive, sophisticated diagnostic devices, while small and mid-sized hospitals in rural China are starting to invest in midrange imaging equipment.

In 2012, China’s diagnostic imaging market was worth $1.4 billion, growing at a rate of 18 percent annually. Imports make up most high end equipment, but low and midrange imaging devices are increasingly produced by domestic suppliers. X-ray machines and ultrasound devices constitute the fastest growing sector of China’s imaging market.