China to open up to more US medical imports
18-Dec-14, Reuters
China agreed to allow U.S. medicines and medical devices into local markets more quickly and open up its anti-trust procedures, U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker said on Thursday after bilateral trade talks between the two nations. "They agreed to cut red tape for imports of new and innovative pharmaceuticals and medical devices and to deal with the backlog," Pritzker told reporters.
U.S. and Chinese officials said they made progress on a range of issues at three-day Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade meetings, which aims to smooth out snags in a trade relationship worth more than USD600 billion a year.
The U.S. side highlighted progress on intellectual property and anti-trust laws as well as opening markets for U.S. products such as medicines, which firms have complained are subject to a burdensome approval process.