US firms in China most pessimistic since 1999, survey says

Just 41 percent of US firms optimistic astir the five-year concern outlook successful China, American Chamber of Commerce says.

US businesses successful China are little optimistic astir conditions successful the state than astatine immoderate constituent successful the past quarter-century, a survey has revealed.

Just 41 percent of US businesses are optimistic astir the five-year concern outlook successful China, according to the survey released connected Wednesday by the American Chamber of Commerce successful Shanghai.

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The figure, down from 47 percent successful 2024, is the lowest since AmCham Shanghai began releasing its annual business study successful 1999.

Only 45 percent of respondents said they expected revenues to summation successful 2025, AmCham Shanghai said, which would beryllium a grounds debased if realised.

Just 12 percent ranked China arsenic their headquarters’ apical concern destination, besides the lowest successful the survey’s history, according to the concern chamber.

Businesses cited US-China tensions and broader geopolitical pressures arsenic the biggest challenges to operating.

Nearly fractional of respondents called for the removal of each US tariffs connected Chinese goods, with 42 percent supporting the scrapping of Chinese tariffs connected US products, according to AmCham Shanghai.

Despite the worsening sentiment, businesses besides reported affirmative developments implicit the past year.

More than 70 percent of respondents said they were profitable successful 2024, up from a grounds debased of 66 percent successful 2023.

And astir fractional of respondents said the regulatory situation successful China was transparent, a 13-percentage constituent leap from the erstwhile year.

“Government efforts to amended the regulatory situation person been noticed by members, but they are overshadowed by US-China commercialized tensions,” AmCham Shanghai seat Jeffrey Lehman said successful a statement.

“We impulse some governments to make a unchangeable and transparent model that is conducive to cross-border commercialized and investment.”

The latest gauge of concern sentiment comes arsenic China’s slowing system is facing a raft of challenges ranging from US President Donald Trump’s commercialized warfare to anemic depletion and a years-long spot downturn.

On Wednesday, China’s National Bureau of Statistics said that user prices fell successful August astatine their fastest complaint successful six months, the latest motion of anaemic request successful the world’s second-largest economy.

Carsten Holz, an adept connected the Chinese system astatine the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said that the AmCham survey’s results showed that the uncoupling of the US and Chinese economies was “well nether way.”

“The results reflector the findings of a May 2025 European Chamber of Commerce successful China study that concern optimism of European firms successful China has ne'er been arsenic debased arsenic it presently is,” Holz told Al Jazeera.

“These findings are successful enactment with China’s argumentation of achieving self-sufficiency crossed each sectors of its economy.”