Only 41% of US companies are optimistic about China’s five-year business outlook, the Chamber of Commerce says.
Released on September 10th, 2025
Chinese US companies are less optimistic about domestic terms than at any point in the last quarter, the survey found.
A survey released by the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday found that just 41% of US companies are optimistic about China’s five-year business outlook.
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This figure is the lowest since Amcham Shanghai began publishing its annual business report in 1999, starting from 47% in 2024.
Amcham Shanghai said only 45% of respondents who expected revenue to increase in 2025 said it was a record low if it happened.
According to Business Chamber, only 12% ranked China as the top investment destination at its headquarters and the lowest in its research history.
Companies cited US-China tensions and wider geopolitical pressures as the biggest challenges of operations.
According to Amcham Shanghai, almost half of respondents demand the removal of all US tariffs on Chinese products, while 42% support the disposal of Chinese tariffs on US products.
Despite the growing emotional state, companies have reported positive developments over the past year.
Over 70% of respondents said they had made profits in 2024 from their record lows in 2023.
Nearly half of respondents also said China’s regulatory environment was transparent, with a point jump of 13% from the previous year.
“While the government’s efforts to improve the regulatory environment have been attracting attention by members, it is hidden by trade tensions between the US and China,” Amcham Shanghai Chairman Jeffrey Lehman said in a statement.
“We urge both governments to create a stable, transparent framework that encourages cross-border trade and investment.”
The latest business sentiment comes as the latest measures of business sentiment face challenges ranging from China’s President Donald Trump’s trade war to weaker consumption and a long-standing fortune slump.
On Wednesday, China’s National Bureau of Statistics said consumer prices fell the fastest and fastest in six months.
Karsten Holtz, a Chinese economy expert at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said the results of the AMCHAM survey showed that fraud in the US and China’s economy was “going smoothly.”
“The results reflect China’s findings from the European Chamber of Commerce in May 2025, reporting that business optimism among Chinese European companies is as low as it is now,” Holtz told Al Jazeera.
“These findings are in line with China’s policy of achieving self-sufficiency across all sectors of the economy.”
