A detailed study has been undertaken of the anisotropic mechanical behaviour of oriented hydroxyapatite reinforced polymer composite (HAPEX((TM))). The oriented material was produced by hydrostatic extrusion of isotropic HAPEX((TM)). It was found that the tensile and shear moduli and strengths of the oriented HAPEX((TM)) are substantially increased compared with isotropic HAPEX((TM)). In particular, the properties along the extrusion direction exceed the lower range of the properties of cortical bone, showing that the oriented HAPEX((TM)) is suitable for use in skeletal major load bearing applications.