Key Takeaways:
China's second-highest ranking economic official has declared biomedicine a pillar industry and brain-computer interfaces a future sector, triggering a rally in healthcare stocks.
Vice Premier Liu Guozhong toured biotech and AI companies in Jiangsu on June 22-23, urging the transformation of biomedicine into an emerging pillar industry and the cultivation of brain-computer interfaces as a future sector, according to state media reports.
"Adhere to the strategic orientation of the 'Four Orientations,' strengthen innovation leadership and policy coordination, build biomedicine into an emerging pillar industry, and foster and develop brain-computer interface future industries," Liu said during the visit, as reported by AASTOCKS.
The endorsement sent Wuxi Biologics (2269.HK) up as much as 6% and Wuxi AppTec (2359.HK) surging 9%, with Citigroup calling China healthcare sector valuations attractive. Liu visited enterprises in biomedicine, AI and cloud computing, as well as the Jiangsu Industrial Technology Research Institute, to assess technological innovation and the commercialization of research outcomes.
The policy signal marks the highest-level endorsement yet for two sectors Beijing has identified as engines of "new quality productive forces." China's BCI market could exceed 5 billion yuan ($734 million) in 2026 and surpass 15 billion yuan by 2030, according to an April think tank report, while biomedicine was designated a pillar industry for the first time in this year's government work report.
BCI Moves From Lab to Clinic
China has accelerated BCI development, with the National Medical Products Administration greenlighting Neuracle Medical Technology's Neural Electronic Opportunity — the world's first invasive BCI system approved for clinical use — in March 2026. The Beinao-1 semi-invasive system, developed by the Chinese Institute for Brain Research and NeuCyber NeuroTech, has been implanted in nearly 30 patients, with the longest implantation exceeding one year and 65,000 cumulative safe operating hours. The system has helped patients with limb paralysis regain motor function and enabled those with aphasia to decode nearly 100 commonly used Chinese words.
A July 2025 guideline from seven authorities set targets for key BCI technology breakthroughs by 2027 and global leadership in innovation capacity by 2030. Total funding raised by Chinese BCI companies in the first quarter of 2026 already surpassed the amount raised in all of 2025, the think tank report showed. BCIFlex, a Beijing-based developer, unveiled a 1,000-channel invasive BCI system in March featuring stretchable electrodes inspired by traditional Chinese paper-cutting art, and has entered Good Clinical Practice trials.
Biomedicine's Licensing Boom
China's innovative drug sector has seen explosive growth in outbound licensing. The total value of outbound licensing transactions involving Chinese innovative drugs in the first quarter of 2026 exceeded $60 billion, nearly half of the full-year 2025 total, according to industry data. GenAns Biotechnology's GA002 injection, the world's first chemogenetics-based gene therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy, received approval to begin clinical trials in late May, while its GA001 injectable therapy has restored vision in more than 10 patients blinded by retinitis pigmentosa.
The policy tailwind comes as Chinese healthcare stocks trade at depressed valuations relative to global peers. Wuxi AppTec, at roughly 18 times forward earnings, and Wuxi Biologics, at about 22 times, have been under pressure from US biosecurity legislation concerns. Liu's endorsement may attract institutional capital back into a sector that has lagged the broader China market recovery, though investors will watch for concrete implementation measures and funding commitments.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
