"Chinese companies are more likely to buy firms in the United States to acquire their technological know-how, while they buy European companies to secure brand names," said Chia. "Meanwhile, they are also expected to buy into the Asia Pacific region to expand their market share."
Chinese companies are also interested in buying life sciences and healthcare assets in North America and Europe to complement existing products or to allow them to move into new product areas.
According to M&A information provider Mergermarket, China Resources Saike Pharmaceutical Co Ltd - the Beijing-based drug maker owned by State-controlled China Resources Pharmaceutical Group - is actively seeking buyers overseas, especially of European specialist companies to widen its portfolio at home.
Meanwhile, the bulk of respondents who had conducted an overseas transaction said that the outcome of their deal was only marginally successful or not successful at all, the survey found.
The main obstacle that Chinese companies looking to acquire targets in North America face is the legislation that stifles foreign ownership of companies.
Plus, the management of cultural clashes when it comes to the price expectations of buyers and sellers could also affect potential outbound opportunities in North America.
Based on China's largest outbound M&A transaction so far, the CNOOC Ltd-Nexen Inc deal - which has seen its review stage delayed several times - the report said that another challenge that Chinese companies face in the North American energy market is whether they will be able to negotiate regulatory hurdles in both Washington and Ottawa.
"In order to ensure the success of their transactions, we recommend that Chinese bidders carry out a comprehensive amount of due-diligence during the deal," said Chia.
"The impact of this can be clearly seen in the survey results, which show that respondents who undertook the least due diligence work went on to suggest that the outcomes of their M&A deals were relatively unsuccessful."
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