BEIJING, CHINA – Media
OutReach – 29 January 2021 – Business confidence in Mainland China is upbeat,
with 71 per cent of surveyed professionals expecting their company’s
profit will remain the same or increase in 2021.
CPA Australia‘s annual Mainland China
Economic and Business Sentiment Survey shows that despite concerns over slowing global
economic growth caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, 64 per cent of surveyed accounting
and finance professionals forecast their company will maintain or increase its
headcount this year.
The survey results reflect that businesses
in Mainland China are showing high levels of confidence and believe that expectations
for a global economic recovery, universally
available COVID-19 vaccines and improved China-US relations will have a
positive impact on Mainland China’s economy in 2021.”
Innovation and technology
The survey results find Mainland
Chinese businesses are focused on enhancing innovation capabilities. Many survey
respondents expect their business to innovate in the areas of products and
services, customer experience and business processes. More than half expect
their business will slightly or significantly increase investment into new
technologies, up seven percentage points from 2020.
The results also indicate
that most businesses in Mainland China are
making investments in innovation and technology that will enable them to take
advantage of long-term growth opportunities in the domestic market and to stay
ahead of competitors through greater use of technology, improved productivity
and better business processes.
Tax relief and fees reduction
The survey results find that
tax relief and fee reductions are key measures supporting businesses
through challenging times. With tax and
fee cuts in Mainland China totaling over 2.5 trillion yuan in 2020, 79 per cent
of surveyed accounting and finance professionals stated that these measures were beneficial to their
business in 2020. More than half stated that the greatest benefit of these
measures was a reduction in the overall tax burden.
In addition, the survey results
show strong support for the continuation of
the government’s tax reform program, with most respondents indicating that individual
income tax (65 per cent), corporate income tax (63 per cent), and value-added
tax (49 per cent) should be the major focus of tax reforms in 2021.
Exploring new markets
Amid global trade tensions, many Mainland
Chinese businesses are optimistic that the signing of the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will positively impact the Mainland
China’s economy in 2021.
According
to the survey, 38 per cent of respondents expect the signing of RCEP
will create more trade opportunities for Chinese businesses, 23 per cent
believe it will create new investment opportunities for Chinese businesses and
17 per cent believe that it will increase collaboration with other countries.
Download Report on
CPA Australia’s Mainland China Economic and Business Sentiment Survey 2021
About CPA Australia
CPA Australia is one of the world’s largest
accounting bodies with more than 166,000
members working in 100 countries and regions around the world, and more than
25,000 members working in senior leadership positions. It has established a
strong membership base of more than 19,000
in the Greater China region.
