Majority of Chinese mainland CEOs believe global economy will grow

Despite concerns about protectionism and trade conflicts, 73 percent of CEOs in the Chinese mainland believe that global economic growth will improve in the next 12 months, compared to their counterparts in Hong Kong (41 percent) and globally (42 percent), according to survey results released by PwC on Wednesday.

The more optimistic attitude of Chinese mainland executives was in part caused by incentive measures launched by China to encourage investment and innovation, boost consumption, and support private enterprises, said Zhou Xing, PwC North China and Beijing office lead partner.

"They are also likely to maintain confidence as a way to cushion concerns triggered by trade frictions and external uncertainties," Zhou said.

The survey also found that 35 percent of Chinese mainland business leaders feel "very confident" in their company's prospects for revenue growth over the next 12 months, and a higher proportion (47 percent) expressed such confidence over the next three years.

To drive their revenue growth in the next 12 months, high proportions of executives in China opted to improve operational efficiency (62 percent), launch a new product or service (62 percent), enter into a new strategic alliance or joint venture (58.5 percent), and enter a new market (55 percent) as the primary activities.

Conducted during September and October 2018, the survey presents the views of 176 executives based in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, covering financial services, technology, communications, and entertainment and media sectors. More than 80 percent of the mainland companies surveyed posted annual revenues between $101 million and $10 billion.

For mainland CEOs, Australia was ranked first this year in terms of the attractiveness of countries as being most important to their company's overall growth prospects over the next 12 months, while the US dropped to the second place.

The three most favored destinations for outbound investments for mainland CEOs that have invested abroad and will continue to do so are the Belt and Road economies (59 percent), Asia Pacific (56 percent) and the European Union (47 percent), according to the survey.