Guest Column

A healthy investment in China

  • Published 19 Mar 2009

Chris Ruffle, manager of China Fund Inc and the Martin Currie China Hedge Fund, talks about China's healthcare sector as the silver lining of the country's economic storm clouds.

Amid the gloom of the global economy, there are few bright spots. China’s healthcare sector is one of them. While many industries in China saw growth slow or reverse in 2008, healthcare enjoyed healthy growth. Sales in the chemical drug, biotech, traditional Chinese medicine and medical device and equipment sub-sectors grew 24%, 32%, 22% and 31% year-on-year, respectively, according to the National Statistics Bureau. We expect them to maintain this pace of growth in 2009. The blossoming of the industry is due to strong support from the Hu Jintao-Wen Jiabao administration, which for some time has sought to boost domestic consumption, so it can replace exports and investment as the main driver of economic growth. To achieve this, the Chinese people need to be convinced that there is a reliable social security system so that they can afford to reduce their 40% savings rate.

Issue icon

Latest Issue

12 Jan 2012

Browse the archive

Get two weeks free trial Subscribe now to access all of China Confidential

China Confidential Funds

China Confidential Funds, a new research service launched by FT China Confidential, is dedicated to illuminating the mainland fund industry. Our team of fund industry experts in Shanghai search out the interesting trends in fund performance, strategy, interactions with overseas funds, regulatory changes, distribution and management. We also use a proprietary system to track the emerging flows of Chinese money. Click here to find out more.

Find out more