U.S. companies in China more upbeat about business environment, ties, survey says

NEW YORK, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- U.S. businesses in China are increasingly optimistic about China's business environment and bilateral relations, media reports said Thursday.

"Some 40 percent of survey respondents were optimistic about their profit potential over the next two years, up from 33 percent a year earlier," Bloomberg reported, citing an annual China business climate survey released Thursday by the non-profit, non-governmental organization American Chamber of Commerce in China (AmCham China).

"And 44 percent indicated they felt good about market growth, a slight uptick from a year ago," it added.

Meanwhile, around 19 percent of survey respondents expressed confidence in China-U.S. relations over the next two years, up from 8 percent a year ago, it said.

AmCham China conducted the survey from Oct. 19 to Nov. 10 last year, and collected responses from 343 members.

"Some of the positivity found in the survey could be because it was conducted as China-U.S. relations improved in the run-up to a meeting" between presidents of both countries in San Francisco in November 2023, an event that "led to a stabilization in ties that has largely held," Bloomberg said.

In a separate report, Reuters, also citing the AmCham China survey, said "around half of the AmCham members surveyed now consider China a top three global priority," a slight increase from last year's results.