The American Chamber of Commerce in China also said in the report accompanying its annual survey of business conditions that the environment for foreign companies is becoming more complex, as the government focuses more on promoting local industry and eliminates some preferential treatment for foreign companies.

A majority of the survey's respondents--73%--said their China operations are profitable, up from 64% in the previous annual survey.

China attracted $69.5 billion in foreign investment last year, and U.S. companies continue to invest to gain market share: 83% of respondents said they are likely to expand capacity in their China operations.

A majority of respondents also said China is their top investment priority globally--even though, for many U.S. companies, the country remains a relatively small market at the moment. More than half the companies said China accounted for 10% or less of their global revenue, with a quarter saying it accounted for less than 2%.

Survey respondents said their biggest business challenges were a lack of transparency, inconsistent and unclear regulations and bureaucracy. A majority of respondents--60%--also said competition from both foreign and domestic companies had increased.

The chamber urged Beijing to continue to embrace market competition and to make the process by which it develops regulations and standards more transparent. The report also said U.S. visa policy makes it unnecessarily difficult for Chinese citizens to make legitimate business trips to the U.S., and thereby discourages Chinese businesses from buying U.S. goods.

A total of 247 member companies participated in this year's survey, though not all responded to every question.

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