Economic crisis expands to world imaging market
The global economic crisis will limit growth in the diagnostic imaging markets in Brazil, India and Russia in 2009, particularly for advanced CT and MRI modalities, shrinking combined revenues by 15 percent, according to market research firm Millennium Research Group.
The current economic downturn has resulted in a significant devaluation of both the Brazilian and Indian currencies over the first four months of 2009. This has increased the relative cost of imported diagnostic imaging systems from the United States and Europe, the report noted.
The higher pricing has made acquiring imported scanners difficult for facilities, and as a result, growth in the Brazilian and Indian diagnostic imaging system market will be severely limited in 2009, according to Ravindra Sharma, senior analyst at MRG. In Russia, the impact of economic uncertainty has been compounded by political unrest.
"Reduced prices for crude oil--Russia's chief export--led to less healthcare funding and curbed spending," Sharma said. "Although diagnostic imaging systems will still sell during this time, many facilities are expected to opt for less-expensive lower-end systems, leading to an overall decline in revenues in 2009."
MRG's Emerging Markets for Diagnostic Imaging 2009 report series covers China in addition to Brazil, India and Russia and provides analysis of industry players, including Agfa HealthCare, Fujifilm Medical Systems, GE Healthcare, Hitachi Medical Systems, Medison, Mindray Medical International, Philips Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, SonoSite, Toshiba Medical Systems, as well as a number of domestic competitors.
The current economic downturn has resulted in a significant devaluation of both the Brazilian and Indian currencies over the first four months of 2009. This has increased the relative cost of imported diagnostic imaging systems from the United States and Europe, the report noted.
The higher pricing has made acquiring imported scanners difficult for facilities, and as a result, growth in the Brazilian and Indian diagnostic imaging system market will be severely limited in 2009, according to Ravindra Sharma, senior analyst at MRG. In Russia, the impact of economic uncertainty has been compounded by political unrest.
"Reduced prices for crude oil--Russia's chief export--led to less healthcare funding and curbed spending," Sharma said. "Although diagnostic imaging systems will still sell during this time, many facilities are expected to opt for less-expensive lower-end systems, leading to an overall decline in revenues in 2009."
MRG's Emerging Markets for Diagnostic Imaging 2009 report series covers China in addition to Brazil, India and Russia and provides analysis of industry players, including Agfa HealthCare, Fujifilm Medical Systems, GE Healthcare, Hitachi Medical Systems, Medison, Mindray Medical International, Philips Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, SonoSite, Toshiba Medical Systems, as well as a number of domestic competitors.