U.S. businesses with operations in China are more focused on the pace of China’s economic growth than on U.S.-China trade frictions, according to a survey released by the American Chamber of Commerce in China. The findings were published as many companies continue to navigate uncertainty from recent U.S. tariff actions and as global forecasts point to slower growth for China in 2026.
The survey, released Friday, polled 368 companies that do business in China and asked them to identify the most important issues affecting their operations. Sixty-four percent of respondents said slowing growth in China—the world’s second-largest economy—was their No. 1 worry, while 58% pointed to U.S.-China trade tensions as a key challenge.
One reason for the ranking, the report said, may be that many U.S. firms have China-focused business models that do not depend on exporting back to the United States. The report added that economists expect China’s economy to slow further this year after expanding at about a 5% annual pace in 2025. It also noted that last year China’s export performance outpaced imports, leading to a record trade surplus of nearly $1.2 trillion.
The AmCham China report said business sentiment improved compared with the prior year. More than half of the companies responding estimated they made a profit in 2025, up from less than half the previous year.
Michael Hart, president of AmCham China, addressed the survey results at a media briefing and described how members view the current environment. “Our companies have to live with the political realities, but they’re focused on the business opportunities,” Hart said, adding, “We have felt that the Chinese government does want foreign investment, they do want American investment.”
Despite the focus shift toward growth, the report placed the survey in the context of recent trade policy and diplomacy. It said the uncertainty American businesses faced eased after a year-long trade truce between Washington and Beijing, reached after President Donald Trump returned to office nearly a year ago and imposed tariffs of up to 145% on imports from China. The report said Trump is expected to visit Beijing in April and that Xi Jinping may visit the United States this year.
The survey also pointed to signs that foreign investment has slowed in China even as sentiment improves. It cited government data showing foreign direct investment at 693 billion yuan (about $99 billion) in the first 11 months of 2025, down 7.5% from the previous year.
Within the chamber survey, 48% of respondents said they were optimistic about growing their markets in China over the next two years, up from 37% the year before. It said the chamber’s members were surveyed between Oct. 22 and Nov. 20, 2025—around the time Trump and Xi met in South Korea and agreed to extend the trade truce. The report also said Chinese leaders, during a high-level annual economic work conference in Beijing in December, acknowledged the need to reform and improve systems for promoting foreign investment.
In the background of the corporate outlook, the report framed China’s growth trajectory and trade position alongside a still-unsteady investment climate. While some respondents indicated improvement after the tariff truce, their worries centered first on the broader macroeconomic slowdown rather than on trade friction alone.
The survey points to how companies may be recalibrating risk across the U.S.-China relationship: with tariff uncertainty somewhat contained, attention has shifted toward whether China’s economy continues to expand at a slower pace and what that means for demand in the market where many U.S. firms already operate.