As changes unseen in a century accelerate across the world, China's impact is becoming increasingly comprehensive, profound, and long-lasting. The global attention on China has never been as wide, deep, and focused as it is today. How does the world view the changes in China? What are the global perspectives on China's development? How does the rest of the world perceive China's image? To find the answers to these questions, the Global Times launched a survey with 51,332 respondents in 46 countries. This is a global public survey with the largest scale, the largest sample size, and the most comprehensive and in-depth questionnaire since the founding of the People's Republic of China.
The survey reveals that China's comprehensive national strength and its components are generally evaluated as “strong/high” by international respondents. The country's economic strength has the highest favorable rating at 77%, followed by sci-tech strength (75%), and financial strength (72%). The survey also shows that younger respondents have a higher evaluation of China's sci-tech strength. More than 70% of respondents from African countries, BRICS countries, the Middle East, and developing countries believe that China's overall national strength is high; this proportion is more than 60% in ASEAN and European countries, and more than half in developed countries. In the ranking of the international status of major countries, 20%, 27%, and 17% of foreign respondents rate China first, second, and third, respectively. Based on a comprehensive calculation method, China ranks second. The U.S. is ranked first at 47%. Russia, Japan, and the UK have similar scores. A relatively large percentage of respondents place Russia in third place and the UK and Japan in fourth place.
The survey also finds that a majority of international respondents have a positive outlook on the prospects of China's economic growth and development potential. Nearly 80% of foreign respondents show confidence in China's development. More than 90% of foreign respondents believe that China's economy will continue to grow in the next decade, and nearly 60% believe that China is a major driving force of world economic growth. More than three-quarters of respondents from developing countries, the Middle East, and BRICS countries expect faster growth of the Chinese economy. In African countries, this proportion reaches 85%. Meanwhile, in Europe and ASEAN regions, it exceeds 70% and in developed countries, it surpasses 60%.
Some 60% of international respondents agree that China's continuously deepening reform and opening-up are “in the right direction.” About two-thirds of respondents believe that the future of the Chinese economy is bright and has great potential while about 20% expressed a neutral stance. African countries hold the highest favorable view (81%), while the proportion of Middle Eastern, BRICS, and developing countries exceeds 70%. More than 60% of respondents from European and ASEAN countries believe that the Chinese economy is bright and has great potential while more than 50% of developed countries hold the same view.
The survey also shows that more than 90% of foreign respondents have an interest in China and 40% have a high level of interest in China, including 14% who are "extremely interested" and 26% who are "very interested." Respondents in developing countries (95%) show a higher interest in China than those in developed countries (86%). In terms of subjective sentiment toward China, 63% of foreign respondents express a favorable opinion of China, while 20% hold a neutral attitude. In terms of different country groups, African countries hold the highest favorable view of China, reaching 84%. This figure is more than 70% in Latin American, BRICS, and developing countries, with nearly 70% in ASEAN countries and more than 60% in Middle East countries. Nearly half of respondents in European countries have a favorable opinion of China, and about 30% hold a neutral attitude.
As for the overall evaluation of China and the Chinese people, nearly 60% of foreign respondents have a "good" impression and over 30% hold a neutral attitude. 74% and 72% of respondents have a good impression of Chinese science and technology and China's economic development respectively. More than 60% of respondents have a good impression of Chinese culture. 55% of foreign respondents have an overall positive impression of the Chinese people, while 36% hold a neutral attitude. More than 70% of foreign respondents have a good impression of the hardworking and innovative spirit of the Chinese people.
The survey also lists more than 10 representative things about China and asks international respondents whether they like them or not. Among them, the popularity of the Great Wall (67%), high-speed rail (65%), pandas (63%), and smart phones (61%) all exceed 60%. More than 50% of foreign respondents choose visa-free transit (57%), electric vehicles (55%), and online shopping (55%). Chinese cuisine (48%) and TikTok (48%) are preferred by nearly half of respondents. Data comparisons show that respondents in developed countries show a relatively higher preference for traditional Chinese symbols like the Great Wall, pandas and Chinese cuisine, while respondents in Middle Eastern, BRICS, and African countries express a higher preference for high-speed rail, smart phones, online shopping, electric vehicles, and other new things in China. The survey was carried out by the Global Times Institute from August to November 2024. The Global Times' report on the survey is available here
