Chinese health minister Chen Zhu announced that Indian pharmaceutical companies were "more than welcome" to sell their products in China. The Indian companies have been complaining for a long time that China did not grant enough market access. He said Indian firms producing "non-generic and creative medicine" were leading in the developing world.

The country has implemented an online tendering system and a unified distribution network to ensure equal opportunities to all suppliers, Chen said. The statement comes after Indian commerce minister Anand Sharma raised the issue of market access for pharmaceutical companies during his visit to Beijing last January.

What China is looking for cost-effective medicines of high quality, the minister said. They must be safe and proved effective. He pointed out that the government had set up central drug procurement system, which would make it easy for foreign companies to make their bids.