China is no longer viewed as the dominant economic superpower by other nations—with the U.S. being viewed as the global leader.
Key Details
- A new Pew Research report says that perceptions of American economic and political power have improved over the past several years.
- The study—measuring thousands of respondents from 23 countries—found a median 41% believe the U.S. to be the world’s economic superpower, compared to 33% for China.
- The study also found 54% global approval for President Joe Biden, compared to 39% saying they do not have confidence in his leadership.
- The study shows a marked improvement in U.S. leadership in dozens of countries since 2020.
- Ukrainian neighbor Poland holds the highest view of America with 93% approval, while Hungary has the lowest surveyed opinion at 44%.
Why It’s News
The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has left U.S.-Chinese relations strained, with the U.S. emerging as the more respected economic power, as China suffered shutdowns, blame for the pandemic, and the source of supply-chain mishaps.
Tensions between Taiwan and China have highlighted the country’s militarism, its oppression of the Uyghur minority has drawn global scrutiny, supply-chain breakdowns have incentivized production facilities to move to India, Chinese spy balloons being discovered over North American military bases, and new reports have shown that the Chinese research was likely the source of the deadly global pandemic—with U.S. government documents claiming the patient zero was Wuhan researcher Ben Hu in late 2019.
The international public has overall mixed feelings about America’s global influence, with 82% of respondents saying that the U.S. interferes in global affairs. Pew reports that general sentiments are that the U.S. does not consider other countries’ interests in its decisions. However, 61% view the U.S. as a force for global stability and peace.
The change reflects both the growing hostility from China in addition to the global reaction to President Joe Biden replacing President Donald Trump and the country’s reception in the face of its ongoing support of the Ukrainian war effort against the ongoing Russian invasion.