Companies show confidence in the Chinese market: US Commerce Chamber

Most companies are upbeat about their employment expansion plans with 44 percent of them planning to augment their headcount this year, according 2023 Special Report on the State of Business in South China.

Most companies still consider China as a critical part in their future strategic development plans with 75 of the participating companies plan to reinvest in China in 2023, including 68 percent of American companies that are determined to dig deeper into the Chinese market.

More than half of the participating companies gained over 30 percent of their global revenue from China. Forty-five percent of the participating companies registered an increase in their revenue from China in 2022, including 43 percent of American companies, according to the report published by the American Chamber of Commerce in South China.

Companies' profitability showed signs of improvement in 2022 with 88 percent of participating companies reporting to have gained profits in China. Up to 90 percent of American companies have achieved profitability and 54 percent of those who are profitable in China reported to have met their budget expectations.

China is believed to enjoy a high return on investment with 76 percent of the participating companies reporting a positive overall ROI in China. 49 percent of the companies consider their overall ROI in China to be higher than their global overall ROI.

China is still deemed as the most attractive destination for investment with 90 percent of the participating companies also believing so, according to the report.

China's economy is set to rebound in 2023 as mobility and activity pick up after the lifting of pandemic restrictions, providing a boost to the global economy, said Dr Harley Seyedin, president of American Chamber of Commerce in South China.

The Chinese economy is projected to expand 5.2 percent in 2023 versus roughly 3 percent last year, a piece of good news for both China and the world as the Chinese economy is expected to contribute a quarter of global growth this year, Seyedin said at President Message of the 2023 Special Report on the State of Business in South China.

China's economy will pick up quickly in the second, third and fourth quarters of 2023, serving as a major global growth engine, and will remain stable in 2024, said Dr Harley Seyedin, who is also a winner of the 2017 Oslo Business for Peace Award, at 2023 White Paper on the Business Environment in China.