A majority of mainland Chinese investors expect the battered local stock market to rise over the next 12 months, according to a J.P. Morgan Asset Management survey released Monday.

The Shanghai composite is one of the worst performing stock indexes in the world this year. In June, the index fell 20 percent from a recent high, or into bear market territory. It remains more than 15 percent lower for 2018, hit by investors' worries about a slowing Chinese economy, authorities' efforts to reduce reliance on debt-fueled growth and rising trade tensions with the U.S.

In contrast, U.S. stocks are at record highs.

Despite the Shanghai market's drop this summer, 73 percent of roughly 200 investment professionals in Shanghai and Beijing said in August they predicted positive returns for domestic stocks, known as A shares, the J.P. Morgan survey showed.

Investor predictions for the performance of Chinese stocks over the next 12 months