Chinese drug manufacturers are winning more drug approvals from US and European regulators. This comes as China's government pushes for higher quality drugs. CGTN's Ren Xueqian shows how this has led not only to more domestic drug exports, but also improvements in drug r&d at home.

According to the US Food & Drug Administration, Chinese pharmaceutical companies last year won approvals for 38 generic drugs or cheaper versions of brand-name medications with expired patents.

Among the recipients, one of the country's largest drug companies -- Huahai Pharmaceutical -- topped the list. It had 10 generic drug approvals, mainly for anti-depressants and blood pressure medications.

CHEN BAOHUA PRESIDENT, HUAHAI PHARMACEUTICAL "Currently, we've received FDA approvals for 53 generic drugs. We began expanding to the US generic drug market in 2014 and so far have multiple top-selling products in the country."

Targeting the US makes a lot of business sense. It's the world's largest generic market, with sales expected to reach 110 billion US dollars in 2020.

According to Huahai's 2017 annual report, revenue grew 22 percent to 5 billion yuan. Up to 60 percent of the total comes from drug sales abroad.

Last month, the Lin-hai based firm obtained another go-ahead from the FDA to sell its version of candesartan -- a drug used to treat high blood pressure.

But as more of its products make they onto the shelves of US drug stores, Huahai is also looking to make these medications available in China.

CHEN BAOHUA PRESIDENT, HUAHAI PHARMACEUTICAL "We exported about 70 percent of our pharmaceutical compounds and active ingredients used in making generic drugs in 2017. We are trying to bring these high-quality medications back to China, and the government has set in place policies to support that."

Chinese generic drugs weren't always made for export. Low-cost generics in China were traditionally made for domestic use. But recently, more manufacturers see sales in the US as a way to both increased profit and encourage developments of higher quality drugs back home.

WANG KE DEPUTY DIRECTOR CHINESE ACADEMY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES & PEKING UNION MEDICAL COLLEGE "Manufacturers will see higher profits by exporting their products. This can also increase competition among Chinese drug makers, encouraging them to use better raw materials in making generic drugs."

With China looking to improve its drug supply, the government has set higher standards for materials and techniques used to make generic drugs. Tax breaks are also given to manufacturers to encourage development and make them more competitive against foreign brands.

WANG KE DEPUTY DIRECTOR CHINESE ACADEMY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES & PEKING UNION MEDICAL COLLEGE "Over 95 percent of China's clinically used medications are generic drugs. A lot of the patented brands are not covered by health insurance and can be very expensive. These new policies can prevent domestic manufacturers from overproducing the same drug, thus expanding the supply of affordable high-quality medications for consumers."

Data from the International Trade Administration shows China's health expenditures reached over 600 billion US dollars in 2015. Pharmaceutical sales amounted to 17 percent of the total that year, with spending on generic or off-patent medicines taking up 64 percent share. And that share is getting more sophisticated as companies' push to go international pays off back home. Ren Xueqian, CGTN.