BEIJING (AP) – Chinese regulators have launched a series of anti-monopoly investigations of foreign automakers and technology providers, stepping up pressure on foreign companies that feel increasingly unwelcome in China.
On Wednesday, a regulator said Chrysler and Germany’s Audi will be punished for violating anti-monopoly rules. Mercedes Benz and Japanese companies also are under scrutiny. A probe of Microsoft was announced last week.
The investigations are fueling unease among foreign companies that complain Beijing uses regulatory measures to hamper them and promote potential Chinese competitors in technology and other fields in violation of its free-trade commitments.
Regulatory conditions are “less certain and more challenging,” said James Zimmerman, a former chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China and managing partner of the Beijing office of law firm Sheppard Mullin Richter and Hampton.
“Foreign companies view recent investigations and prosecutions as politically motivated,” he said.