Beijing announced on Sunday that it will restrict government purchases of medical devices from the EU valued at over 45 million yuan (approximately €5.3 million) as a direct response to the European Commission’s decision to limit Chinese firms’ access to the bloc's public procurement market.

Under the Commission’s previous move last month, Chinese companies are barred from bidding on public contracts for medical devices in the EU single market exceeding €5 million. Additionally, winning bids must contain no more than 50% of components sourced from China.

In a statement, China said it had “no choice but to implement countermeasures".

A spokesperson for China's ministry of commerce added that Beijing has repeatedly expressed, through bilateral dialogues, its willingness to address differences with the EU through dialogue, consultation, and bilateral procurement arrangements.

“Unfortunately, the EU has ignored China’s goodwill and sincerity and continues to impose restrictive measures and build new protectionist barriers,” the statement read.

This latest escalation follows Beijing’s announcement last week of anti-dumping duties of up to 34.9% on European brandy imports for the next five years.

The pattern of reciprocal trade actions continues to define the EU-China economic relationship.

In recent weeks, China extended its anti-dumping investigation into EU pork imports by six months, while the EU imposed tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs).

These developments come at a sensitive time in EU-China relations, which are undergoing a cautious diplomatic reset.

A key milestone in the evolving dialogue will be the upcoming EU-China Summit, scheduled to take place in Beijing in the second half of July 2025.

MedTech Europe, the EU’s medical devices industry association, expressed regret over China’s latest decision, saying it further restricts access to the Chinese public procurement market.

“Measures of this nature risk deepening trade tensions and ultimately deny patients timely access to indispensable medical technologies,” the group said in a statement.

“We urge both the European Union and China to engage in constructive dialogue to resolve current challenges to market access and to uphold fair, predictable, and reciprocal trading conditions.”

The European Chamber of Commerce in China echoed these concerns, warning that the announcement increases uncertainty for European businesses operating in the country.

In particular, the lack of specificity in the new restrictions raises the risk that local authorities managing public tenders may enforce the measures in an overly stringent manner.

This could exclude even highly localised European medical device manufacturers from bidding for contracts, according to the Chamber.

For instance, although the Chinese government has indicated that European-invested enterprises in China will be exempt from the restrictions, the notice does not clarify what qualifies as a ‘European-invested enterprise'.

According to the European Chamber, it also remains unclear whether volume-based procurement tenders, which often exceed the threshold, will fall under the new rules.