There's widespread suspicion of China-based companies and Chinese audits after a wave of frauds. But so far Chinese officials have resisted efforts by U.S. financial regulators to cooperate in investigations of China-based companies. In fact, China has forbidden audit firms from sharing audit work papers with U.S. regulators.

Mary Schapiro, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, visited Beijing recently and met with Chinese officials. Those meetings included the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission, China's equivalent of the SEC, which is thought to be more sympathetic to U.S. demands than the Ministry of Finance.