Healthcare Services No Longer "Restricted" in China's Foreign Investment Catalogue

Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited CCM comments on the newly issued Foreign Investment Catalogue 2011 revision which moved healthcare service sectors to "permitted" from "restricted" category. On December 24, 2011, China's National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Commerce jointly issued the Revised Catalogue which will take effect on January 30, 2012. The "Foreign Investment Catalogue 2007 revision" current in effect will be superseded simultaneously. The notable changes in the Revised Catalogue include: first, expanding the sectors that are opened to foreign investment and relaxed restrictions; secondly, encouraging foreign investment in service sectors, high-end manufacturing sectors, and high tech enterprises. The Revised Catalogue expanded the "encouraged" categories and reduced "restricted" and "prohibited" categories. Foreign-invested healthcare service is removed from the "restricted" categories. The change means that there would be no more restrictions on shareholding percentage by foreign investors in these sectors. All regulatory approval processes for foreign investment still apply.