(Yicai) April 9 -- A semi-annual trade exposition seen as the barometer of the global medical devices industry has opened in Shanghai against a backdrop of trade uncertainty brought about by US President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs policy.

The 91st China International Medical Equipment Fair opened yesterday at the city’s National Exhibition and Convention Center, where it will run through April 11. Long hailed as a key platform for the world’s leading medical imaging companies, the fair remains a launchpad for cutting-edge innovations and global product releases.

But American businesses in China face difficulties after Trump unveiled so-called reciprocal tariffs on US trading partners on April 2. Two days later, China’s commerce ministry announced an anti-dumping investigation into medical computed tomography tubes imported from the US and India. Most of CT tubes used in CT equipment in China are imported.

US medical devices supplier GE Healthcare Technologies was among the companies most affected by the ministry’s announcement. Its shares [NASDAQ: GEHC] have plunged more than 18 percent since April 4, after plunging by 16 percent on that day alone.

GE Healthcare has brought over 80 medical devices to the CMEF, all of which incorporate digital and artificial intelligence technologies, Zhang Yihao, the company's president and chief executive for China, said at the fair's opening ceremony. Eighty percent of the 24 new products on show were developed by Chinese teams, he added.

When asked about China’s anti-dumping probe, GE Healthcare told Yicai that some of the CT tubes its devices use are already being made in Beijing, and that its core component suppliers are all Chinese manufacturers.

Chinese medical device suppliers, such as Neusoft Medical Systems, are also taking part in the CMEF. The Shenyang-based firm has brought four CT products to the exposition, one of which is equipped with ultra-high-definition, ultra-thin detectors and the ClearInfinity AI algorithm to significantly improve the resolution of small lesions, the representative at its booth said.

Neusoft Medical has independently innovated and developed key components for various medical imaging devices, including CT, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography-computed tomography, the person added.

With the growth of internet-based healthcare, global medical companies are speeding their entry into China’s online healthcare ecosystem at the CMEF. For example, Japan’s Omron signed a deal with JD Health to promote the interconnection of health data and explore the innovative applications of AI in the healthcare management field.

Companies are looking at using new technologies such as AI to build a government-community-individual closed management loop for the prevention and control of hypertension, thereby lowering medical costs and easing the burden of the disease, Chen Yixiao, managing director of Omron Healthcare China, told Yicai.

"Digitalization and telemedicine are playing an increasingly important role in chronic disease management," Chen noted. “Omron hopes to expand the application scenarios of its products through in-depth cooperation with Chinese internet healthcare giants, like JD Health.”

Another foreign dealmaker was Novo Nordisk. The Danish pharmaceutical giant inked a deal with Tencent Health to cooperate in areas such as science-guided weight management and improving the accessibility of obesity diagnosis and treatment.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione