On June 20, the European Union (EU) banned Chinese companies from bidding for contracts to purchase medical equipment of the bloc from 5 million euros or more.
This is the latest move by the EU in response to China's restrictions on EU market access.
The EU's measures concern a wide range of medical supplies, from medical masks to X-ray machines.
EU Commissioner for trade and economic security Maros Sefcovic said the EU wants to create an equal environment for businesses, but is also ready to dialogue with China to address the issue.
The European Commission (EC) said in a statement that the EU is reacting to the bloc's medical equipment not being allowed to participate in Chinese government contracts.
In addition to banning Chinese companies from bidding for large-scale medical equipment procurement contracts, the EU also limits the participation of Chinese equipment in bidding contracts to no more than 50%.
The EU believes the measure will force China to end discrimination against European companies and European-made medical equipment.
