Chinese Hospitals to Buy GE Medical Equipment with US LoansNearly 30 hospitals in 13 provinces and autonomous regions in China, including Shanxi, Shandong and Guizhou, will purchase US$40 million worth of advanced General Electric Corp. (GE) medical equipment.A four-party signing ceremony for agreements on the purchase with US loans was held in Beijing Friday, and packages of imaging diagnostics systems, treatment equipment and patient monitoring systems will be delivered to those hospitals soon. Bank One of the United States and Bank of China signed in the capacity of the lender and borrower respectively. GE Medical Systems is the supplier of the equipment and the Trading Corporation of the China National Technology Import and Export Corporation acts as agent for the purchase. The loan project, which has a repayment period of seven years, enjoys preferential government loan treatment including free taxes. Chih Chen, president of GE (China) Medical System, said the US loan project will make it possible for more Chinese hospitals to purchase high-tech medical equipment that are in urgent need and help these hospitals, especially those in remote and ethnic minority areas, to improve their diagnostics and performance. Bank One, the fourth largest bank in the United States, was the first US bank to establish a presence in China after 1949. GE Medical System is the world's leading supplier of medical equipment. |
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