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Singapore medical services firm Healthway Medical (HEMC.SI) said China would account for half of its revenue by 2015 from an estimated 5% this year as it seeks aggressive growth in the world's third-largest economy.
Healthway plans to open 40–50 new medical centres in China over the next five years including six in Shanghai this year, the firm’s managing director Wong Weng Hong told Reuters in an interview today.
“In the next five years, the business in China will be similar in size to Singapore,” Wong said. “At end of 2010, China will contribute 5% to revenue, but in five years it would have caught up.”
Healthway also expects the group’s revenue and profit to grow at 15–20% annual pace for the next five years.
The largest private medical service provider in Singapore also expects the city-state to remain a significant contributor to growth, and plans to double the number of clinics and doctors from over 80 and 200 respectively, Wong said.
“We see about 4,000 patients everyday in Singapore daily; in the next five years, we will double this number,” he added.
Wong said demand for medical services in Singapore should rise as the two casino-resorts are up and running.
The two casinos — being separately build by Las Vegas Sands (LVS.N) and Malaysia’s Genting Group (GENT.KL) — will open this year.
Healthway is also looking to establish a large medical facility to tap future growth, he said, with further plans to foray into new areas of plastic surgery and cancer treatment.
Shares of Healthway rose 69% last year, but underperformed its rivals Raffles Medical Group (RAFG.SI) and Parkway Holdings’ (PARM.SI) whose shares more than doubled.The broader Singapore index (.FTSTI) was up 63% in the same period.
At 0830 GMT, Healthway was up 1.5% at 16.5 cents, with over 21 million shares changing hands.
