Americans See China as Top Economy Now, but U.S. in Future

GALLUP ^ | February 22, 2016 | Lydia Saad

[expat_panama]

Story Highlights

• By 50% to 37%, more Americans say China than U.S. is top economy
• But more now believe U.S. economy will overtake China in future
• Republicans fuel increase in belief U.S. will be future leader

PRINCETON, N.J. -- Despite the slowdown in China's economy that is creating global economic turmoil, more Americans continue to believe China is the world's leading economic power rather than the U.S. However, the current 13-percentage-point margin in China's favor -- 50% vs. 37% -- is slightly smaller than it has been in the past several years.

 

The latest results are from Gallup's Feb. 3-7 World Affairs survey.

In 2000, when the U.S. economy was booming...

 

 

At the same time, Gallup now finds more Americans predicting that the U.S. rather than China will be the world's leading economic power in 20 years....

 

Both Republicans and Democrats have become more optimistic about the outlook for the United States' global economic position...

 

Americans viewed Japan as more powerful a decade and a half ago, at a time when its economy was the world's second-largest, a position it lost to China in recent years...

 

Bottom Line

Whether China or the U.S. is the larger economic power is not entirely straightforward. On the basis of raw GDP, the U.S. is still larger, but... 

 

Survey Methods... 

[expat_panama]

After the second world war when Europe was smodering and Asia was radioactive the U.S. econ output was two-thirds of the world's total. Today it's about 30% and we're much better off --and so is everyone else. China has four times the population of the U.S. and everyone would be better off if half that population wasn't still scratching the ground for food.

Let's face it, relative parity sucks and we don't make ourselves better off by having others worse off. Problem is that as much as I'd like to see the Chinese as well off as we are, I'm afraid it's going to take a while...

[expat_panama]

A great Friday morning to all w/ stocks at new highs even if it did come in weaker trading.  Right now stock index futures are convinced of more on the upside because today --[tadadut tadadah]  is GDP DAY:

8:30 AM GDP - Second Estimate
8:30 AM GDP Deflator - Second Estimate
8:30 AM Personal Income
8:30 AM Personal Spending
8:30 AM Core PCE Prices
10:00 AM Michigan Sentiment - Final

Yeah, I know, but anyway gold and silver futures look glum at -0.31% and -0.96%, but what the hey we're up at $1,236.18 and $15.16!  --and for those wanting more...

Is "Helicopter Money" The Fed's Next Step? - David Malpass, New York Sun
Helicopter Drops? Let's Please Not Go There - Jeremy Warner, Telegraph
The 1 Chart That Turns People Into Gold Believers - Nathan Lewis, Forbes
A Broken Market Sans Memory Will Make 2016 Difficult - Doug Kass, RM
Historical Pattern Says Risk of 2016 Bear Is Zero - Simon Maierhofer, MWy
The Robots Are Coming for Wall Street - Nathaniel Popper, New York Times

[HomerBohn]

Japan, which is secretly arming and building up troop strength, is secretly planning a two-pronged simultaneous attack on North Korea and China. Japan can’t wait for the sissies who are too busy ruining America to act, and besides they want to insure that the result will be victory instead of stalemate.

Those reading this will be, like the Chinese and North Korean boy-despot, skeptical and perhaps quiet. They don’t realize what a sleeping giant Japan truly is.

The results of such an attack will flabbergast their enemies and the world. The rising sun will rise once again, but this time will indicate a Nippon victory.

[expat_panama]

Are you joking or are you reading from a 85-year old newspaper?

[bert]

That is a fair assessment

A poll representing the views rather than actual knowledge is frivolous at best

The fact is Americans are largely ignorant of facts measuring the economies and the poll is meaningless.

[Buckeye McFrog]

China beats an Obama-led US, but not a Trump-led US.
Makes sense.

[HomerBohn]

I will comment in six weeks.

[Minutemen]

China, flooding the globe with cheaply made junk and adulterated food. Their time is short.

[Lurkina.n.Learnin]

No ping today? This reminds me of back in the seventies when Japan was surely headed towards world domination and we would all undoubtedly be servile to them for eternity.

[expat_panama]

...in the seventies when Japan was surely headed towards world domination...

Yeah, I'm remembering some really neat Sean Connery movie that capitalized on that meme, just chock full of high tech stuff where the Japanese were 'sooo far ahead of us'.

[expat_panama]

...the views rather than actual knowledge...

Sure it's no good for ecomparing the two nations, but it's a good indicator of where folks are coming from in the U.S.

[matrix123]

Americans have it backward. It is the US which has the world largest economy and is the world most powerful country. And it is China which is projected to surpass US GDP to become the world largest economy, not the other way around. No one is sure when or if China will eventually become more powerful than the USA.