Foreign medical equipment makers said to be probed on suspicion of using bribes

Regulators including the State Administration for Industry and Commerce are investigating whether foreign medical-equipment makers such as General Electric (GE.NYSE), Royal Philips NV (PHG.NYSE) and Siemens AG (SIE.FRA, SIE.ETR) paid bribes or used illegal strategies to dominate the mainland market, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. The three companies command over 80% of China’s market for large medical equipment like CT and MRI scanners, said the sources, who claimed it has yet to be decided if regulators will start a formal investigation. The administration subsequently issued a statement denying it has started investigating Siemens for commercial bribery.