SHANGHAI—U.S.-China political tensions stay the highest concern for American corporations in China regardless of some optimism in regards to the relationship bettering below President Biden, in keeping with corporations surveyed by the American Chamber of Commerce in China.
Half of U.S. corporations are pessimistic in regards to the impact that the bilateral relations might have on their China enterprise over the following two years, with solely 16% of respondents expressing optimism, in keeping with the chamber’s annual Enterprise Local weather Survey, which was revealed Tuesday in Beijing. The chamber surveyed 345 corporations in October and November 2020.
The pessimism comes regardless of 50% of respondents predicting the tone of the U.S.-China relationship would doubtless enhance this 12 months following the change in management in Washington, up from simply 30% of respondents final 12 months who thought relations would enhance.
“The connection stays contentious,” Greg Gilligan, AmCham China’s chairman, stated in an interview. The warning amongst U.S. corporations displays a perception that, below President Biden, “we’re returning to a extra conventional bilateral relationship and diplomacy, however we’re not returning to a decrease degree of rigidity within the relationship,” he stated.
China was the one main world economic system to increase final 12 months, and served as a lifeline for a variety of enormous U.S. corporations, together with Starbucks Corp. , Nike Inc. and Tesla Inc., which reported rising gross sales in China whilst its different markets had been crushed by the pandemic.
