Foreign firms' prices under scrutiny in China

China is increasingly using its six-year-old monopoly law to put pressure on foreign companies that are seen as having excessive market share, The Wall Street Journal reported. Chinese antitrust officials have recently investigated companies ranging from car makers Audi (NSU.ETR) and Mercedes-Benz to technology companies Microsoft (MSFT.NASDAQ) and Qualcomm (QCOM.NASDAQ). Experts say China is responding to greater awareness that the prices its people and companies pay for goods from foreign companies are often higher than those in other markets, while US businesses have complained they are being unfairly targeted.