18 Jun 2021
Sentiments around China up by 16% in 2021 as US firms continue to rely for domestic supply, reveals GlobalData
Posted in Business Fundamentals

The COVID-19 pandemic and strained economic ties between the US and China impacted the sentiments of US-based companies around China in 2020. However, sentiments seem to have gained ground in 2021* growing year-on-year by around 16%, finds GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Rinaldo Pereira, Senior Business Fundamentals Analyst at GlobalData, comments: 'With no end in sight for the US-China trade war, 'geopolitics' was the top theme for the US companies discussing China in 2020, and the trend continues in 2021. Yet, the negativity around the country decreased in Q1 2021, with the same continuing in Q2 2021.

'The decrease in negativity coupled with the rise in neutrality around China in Q1 and Q2 suggests that US companies are increasingly indifferent towards sanctions. Several companies continue to rely on China despite the US moves to improve domestic supply. An example is Apple, whose 2021 supplier list is dominated by China.'

In 2021, sentiments rose as several companies witnessed recoveries in Chinese businesses. The Chinese government's new anti-sanctions law is likely to dampen the sentiments for US companies in 2021.

The US is looking to ramp up domestic production to fill the supply gaps in light of uncertain relations with China. Sentiments around themes such as 5G and IoT have grown in 2021, as US companies look to become more self-sufficient. Qualcomm Inc, Apple Inc, General Electric Co and Intel Corp are some of the top companies with the most mentions of China in 2020 and 2021.

Mr Pereira concludes: 'The Chinese anti-sanctions law is likely to be highly selective and might not impact every US company in China. Geopolitics was a top theme in Q1 2021 for US companies discussing China, but its mentions were significantly lower compared to Q4 2020 or Q1 2020, suggesting that the turmoil has died down for the time being. Despite looming uncertainty, China continues to be a huge market for several US companies.'

* Until 11 June 2021

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GlobalData plc published this content on 18 June 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 18 June 2021 09:28:04 UTC.