Key facts
- Global favorability for China has risen, with more people viewing China positively than the U.S. in 25 out of 36 surveyed countries.
- Perceptions of the U.S. have declined globally, with President Donald Trump also viewed less favorably than Xi Jinping in many nations.
- This marks the first time in Pew's 20-year tracking that China has been viewed more positively than the U.S.
- While the U.S. is still seen to respect personal freedoms more than China, the gap is narrowing.
- China is perceived to interfere less in other countries' affairs than the U.S.
Global perceptions of China and its leader Xi Jinping have improved, surpassing views of the United States and President Donald Trump for the first time in two decades, according to a Pew Research Center survey. The study, which polled over 42,000 people in 36 countries between February and May, found that in 25 of those nations, more respondents held favorable views of China than of the US.
While confidence in both leaders remained generally low, Xi Jinping scored higher than Donald Trump in most surveyed countries. The US still leads in perceived respect for personal freedoms, but the gap has narrowed, and China is seen as interfering less in other countries' affairs than the US. Favorable views of China reached record highs in several nations, including Italy, Spain, and Turkey, with middle-income countries generally showing more positive views than wealthier ones.
Experts suggest that the "volatility of US policy" and efforts by Beijing to improve its image, particularly in developing countries, may have contributed to the shift. While China is seen as more predictable, questions remain about its authoritarian nature and assertive foreign policy under Xi's leadership.