US firms bullish on prospects in China

Companies from the United States doing business in China are becoming more optimistic about China-US business ties despite the possibility of restrictive trade actions from the Trump administration, a new survey said on Tuesday.

According to the 2018 China Business Climate Survey Report from the American Chamber of Commerce in China, about 36 percent of the respondents believe relations between the two countries will improve this year - compared with 17 percent in 2017 - possibly influenced by the perceived success of US President Trump's visit to China and President Xi Jinping's earlier trip to the US.

The chamber's member companies expect specific reforms including greater access to officials and consistent implementation of national policies at the local level to be further enhanced this year. About 46 percent of the respondents are confident the government will further open China's market to foreign investment within the next three years, up from 34 percent last year.