Three quarters of the 160-plus American invested companies in south China's Guangdong Province that were recently surveyed show they are starting to make profits.

 

The announcement was made by Harley Seyedin, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Guangdong who is also vice chairman of the council for Asian-Pacific operation with the American Chamber of Commerce.

 

The survey respondents answered questions concerning business environment, investment plans and profit making. It was conducted by Hewitt Associates.

 

According to the survey, 16 percent of the companies surveyed have been operating business in China for less than five years, while eight percent of the companies were in China less than two years.

 

Of the companies still operating in the red, eight percent predict they will start making profits next year, four percent forecast that they will make profits in three to five years. Only two percent of those surveyed predict they will take a longer time to start making profits.

 

A number of American invested firms have extended their scope of business from the conventional fields of manufacturing and trade to professional and commercial services.

 

The vast Chinese market and cheaper labor are two prominent factors that have attracted Americans to invest in China, the survey shows.

 

Nearly 38 percent of the companies surveyed each have global revenue of US$500 million, of which, about one third is contributed by their China-based business operations.

 

Almost all firms surveyed say the business environment for overseas investors has kept improving in the recent years, with two thirds describing the reform measures as effective.

 

The survey also shows that two thirds of the respondents invested US$10 million to expand their business last year and 60 percent said they will invest US$10 million this year in a bid to gain greater market share in China.

 

(Xinhua News Agency April 8, 2006)