Why Turkey Remains a Strategic Destination for Chinese Medical Enterprises
In April 2025, a Chinese company’s performance at the Expomed Eurasia medical exhibition in Istanbul, Turkey, added a new chapter to China-Turkey healthcare cooperation. Beijing Aimed Medical Device Co., Ltd. showcased its independently developed innovative product—the Jetfall® Medical CO₂ Contrast Pressure Injection Kit—successfully attracting significant attention from distributors in Turkey, as well as the Middle East and North Africa. Following the exhibition, several local agencies reached preliminary cooperation agreements with the Aimed team, laying a solid foundation for the product’s future expansion into the Eurasian market.
In July 2025, Shenzhen Kangtai Biological Products Co., Ltd. successfully obtained Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certification from the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TITCK) for its 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. This milestone paves the way for subsequent localized production or technical cooperation.
Chinese enterprises’ expansion in the Turkish market is showing a trend of multi-point breakthroughs and upgrading from trade to technology, leveraging diversified pathways.Chinese EnterprisesComprehensively establishing influence in the Turkish market.
Why Choose Turkey?
Turkey's healthcare market is a blue ocean with structural opportunities.
As the global healthcare industry undergoes profound restructuring, Turkey—spanning across Asia and Europe—is emerging as a strategic high ground that global medical enterprises cannot overlook, driven by its vast and rapidly growing market demand, unique geographical advantages, and clear industrial upgrade strategies. For Chinese medical companies seeking breakthroughs in globalization, gaining an in-depth understanding of the current status, depth, and opportunities of the Turkish healthcare market is an indispensable step.
Medical Device Sector,Turkey’s medical device market, valued at approximately USD 4.5 billion with an annual growth rate of up to 14%, relies on imports for about 85% of its supply. Ranking among the fastest-growing markets globally, its highly outward-oriented landscape offers substantial opportunities for foreign enterprises with technological advantages, making it a high-certainty incremental market.
Domestic manufacturing capabilities are relatively concentrated in low-value consumables and the assembly of basic equipment. In fields with high technological barriers, such as high-end medical imaging, in vitro diagnostics (IVD), minimally invasive surgical instruments, and robot-assisted systems, there is almost complete reliance on global supply chains, resulting in a long-standing and rigid demand for imports.
Pharmaceutical SectorFacing structural contradictions in its industrial landscape, 85%-90% of conventional pharmaceuticals are now produced locally, yet high-quality active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), innovative biologics, and complex formulations remain heavily reliant on imports. According to data from the China Industrial Economy Information Center (CIEC), Turkey’s pharmaceutical imports exceeded $6.5 billion between December 2024 and November 2025, reflecting sustained strong demand for high-value-added medicines and stable trade figures.
Positioning of Regional Medical Centers:Turkey is actively building a healthcare services and medical tourism hub radiating to the Middle East, Central Asia, and the Balkans, which has further driven demand for advanced equipment and standardized solutions.
Whether it is the continuous investment in upgrading the public healthcare system, or the national strategy to build a regional medical tourism hub,Policy-Driven Certainty in DemandAll have provided a stable and continuously growing policy-driven market for imported pharmaceutical products and high-end medical devices.
(The above data are sourced from the Investment Agency of Turkey, CIEC, and public information.)
The Dual Allure of Hub Status and Industrial Ecosystem
Turkey’s value extends far beyond its domestic market of 85 million people; it lies even more in the unique industrial ecosystem and radiating influence it has built as a regional hub.
Straddling Asia and Europe, Turkey serves as a natural bridge connecting the markets of the Middle East, Central Asia, the Balkans, and North Africa,An Irreplaceable Geographic and Trade Hub;It is not only a hub for the distribution of goods but also, by virtue of its customs union with the European Union and free trade agreements with multiple countries, has become a strategic “springboard” and “transit hub” for Chinese enterprises to compliantly access the European market and even broader global markets.
Guide to Adapted Product Categories in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Sector
Based on market demand and the competitive landscape, Chinese enterprises can focus on the following highly compatible product categories.
| Field | Specific Directions | Potential Opportunities |
| Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and Intermediates | High-Quality APIs Compliant with European and US Pharmacopoeia Standards, and Key Intermediates for Off-Patent Drugs. | Directly addressing the most critical gap in Turkey's pharmaceutical supply chain, with stable and sustained demand. |
| Biopharmaceuticals and High-End Collaboration | Vaccines, blood products, biosimilars; joint R&D, technology licensing (License-in/out). | Precisely aligned with Turkey’s national industrial upgrading direction, enabling an evolution from supply-based cooperation to technological symbiosis. |
| Pharmaceutical Equipment and Integrated Solutions | Bioreactors, Aseptic Filling Lines, Freeze Dryers, and Smart Manufacturing & Digital Factory Solutions. | To meet the rigid capital expenditure requirements for new construction and upgrades of biopharmaceutical production capacity, the market space is huge. |
| Field | Specific Directions |
| High-Barrier Medical Devices | Building on CE certification, high-end medical imaging equipment (such as CT and MRI), IVD devices and consumables, as well as automated, portable, and minimally invasive surgical instruments and energy platforms, demonstrate significant comprehensive cost-performance advantages. |
| Primary Healthcare and Inclusive Solutions | Basic patient monitors, ultrasound equipment, ventilators, and central sterile supply department (CSSD) equipment. |
| High-Value Consumables and Rehabilitation Equipment | Cardiovascular interventional consumables, orthopedic implants, advanced wound dressings; rehabilitation robots, smart walking aids, etc. |
The 33rd Expomed Eurasia 2026 Istanbul Medical Exhibition
In the face of a complex market, choosing an efficient entry path is crucial. Participating in top-tier industry exhibitions in Turkey and the Eurasian region provides a fast track to rapidly building market awareness, connecting with core resources, and converting opportunities into contracts.
The 33rd Expomed Eurasia (2026 Turkey Istanbul Medical Exhibition) will be held at the TUYAP Exhibition Center in Istanbul from April 16 to 18, 2026.
AsThe largest, longest-established, and most specialized in the Eurasian regionAs one of the premier events in the healthcare industry, Expomed Eurasia has successfully held over 30 editions and is widely recognized as a market bellwether and a hub for resource aggregation. The 2026 exhibition is expected to attract more than 1,000 global companies and 35,000 professional visitors, including not only mainstream Turkish importers, distributors, and large hospital procurement teams but also key decision-makers from the Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa, and Europe.。
From understanding the market to integrating with the entire industry chain, a meticulously prepared exhibition journey can serve as the lever for your enterprise to unlock the vast Eurasian market. Chinese companies are cordially invited to bring their innovative solutions and join us on this journey to Turkey.
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(Image source: Expomed Eurasia official website)
Ms. Wang: 17774983530
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