Outlook
Risks & Opportunities
Business Confidence Survey 2025/26
AHK Greater China
The German AHK Greater China (Auslands-Handels-Kammer) has recently (2025/26) conducted a survey asking German companies already settled down in China about their opinions and intention to stay or go. Here are the key findings:
- Around half of surveyed companies plan to increase investments.
- Vast majority has no intention to leave China.
- Maintaining competitiveness remains leading investment reason.
- Trust and processes are more challenging than gaps in expertise.
Key Findings
68%
A remarkable two thirds (68%) of (survey) participants are already engaged with Chinese companies going abroad, mainly by providing products and services (44%).
56%
The survey shows that 56% of German companies are considering more engagement with Chinese partners. The aim is to leverage knowledge and expand business in China.
Last year (2025), German investment in China increased by more than 55%, the UK by 15.9%, and Switzerland by 66.8%—European companies are looking eastward And "throw It Eastward“.
Source: Xinhua News Agency, 3 February 2026, Expectations Behind the "Looking East" of German Enterprises' Overseas Investment.
German companies are reducing investments in the U.S. while turning their attention to the China market.
Two recent reports released by the German Institute for Economic Research outline significant changes in the overseas investment landscape of German companies.
In 2025, as the global investment landscape quietly shifts the study shows that German enterprises' direct investment in the US decreased by about 45% year on-year from February to November 2025, while German investment in China increased by more than 50% year-on-year in 2025.
Source: Recent reports released by the German Institute for Economic Research.
Geopolitical Assessment
Source Allianz Trade: Country Risk Report
January 2026 - China
Country Rating B1
[Low Risk For Enterprises]
Source Export Finance Australia: Combined score of Moody's, Fitch, Standard & Poor's, OECD:
China overall risk rantings:
Less Risky
News
CGTN Poll: Over 85% of respondents say 'Investing in China' key to global competitiveness
According to an online poll released by CGTN, 85.1% of respondents believe that "heading to China" and "investing in China" have become inevitable choices for enterprises to deeply integrate into the global market and boost their global competitiveness.
In 2025, China's total retail sales of consumer goods surpassed 50 trillion yuan for the first time, and the contribution rate of consumer spending to economic growth stood at 52%. In this regard, 93.5% of respondents believed that consumption is playing an increasingly prominent role in driving China's economy.
In fact, the enormous potential of China's consumer market epitomises the strengths of its ultra-large market, which is reflected not only in its massive consumption scale but also in its diverse application scenarios, fast-updating consumption formats and high market vitality.
According to the survey, 87.5% of respondents pointed out that China's continuously upgrading ultra-large consumer market is forcing the segmentation of consumer demand, thereby reshaping consumption habits and the logic of industrial development.
CGTN 14-Apr-2026