As President Trump traveled to Beijing for a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, a new NPR/Chicago Council on Global Affairs/Ipsos poll finds most Americans view China primarily as an economic rival seeking global influence — but they also want trade to continue and prefer lower tariffs to limit price pressures at home.
How Americans see China
Nearly eight in 10 respondents said they believe China wants to be the dominant world leader. By a 56% to 29% margin, Americans see that threat as more economic than military, and only 13% said China represents no threat to the United States.
When asked to categorize China, 37% called it a rival and 21% an adversary; about 1 in 5 described China as a necessary strategic partner and only 2% labeled it an ally. Of the 10 countries included in the survey, only Russia drew more antagonistic views, with two-thirds calling Russia an adversary (43%) or rival (21%). Australia was most often seen as an ally (51%), followed by Japan, Germany and South Korea; Saudi Arabia and India were most frequently identified as strategic partners.
Views on tariffs and trade
Tariffs are widely seen as harmful to both countries. Large majorities said tariffs are bad for the U.S. cost of living (76%), Americans’ standard of living (70%), the Chinese economy (72%) and the U.S. economy (66%); 61% said tariffs are bad for creating American jobs.
Partisan responses diverge. A majority of Republicans agreed with the view that tariffs are good for creating jobs (66%), for the U.S. economy (64%) and for their own standard of living (52%). Independents and Democrats largely disagreed with that assessment.
Overall, 62% oppose significantly reducing trade with China, a shift from 2020–21 when more Americans expressed willingness to curb trade even at the cost of higher prices. With many consumer goods sourced from China and inflationary pressures still felt by households, current sentiment favors keeping trade open to avoid further price increases.
Most respondents (58%) oppose increasing tariffs on Chinese imports. Seven in 10 said they would support reducing tariffs in exchange for China buying more U.S. agricultural products, and 7 in 10 want U.S. companies barred from selling sensitive, high-tech products to China. A slim majority (53%) opposed limiting the number of Chinese students studying in the United States.
Partisan fault lines are sharp: roughly three-quarters of Republicans said they want to raise tariffs on Chinese imports (despite the broader opposition), while 83% of Democrats and 67% of independents oppose raising them. Six in 10 Republicans would accept decreased trade even if it meant higher prices for Americans, and 7 in 10 Republicans support limiting Chinese students’ access to U.S. universities.
Iran, China and the global picture
China’s ties with Iran — including energy purchases — are likely to be part of discussions with Chinese leaders. A separate Chicago Council/Ipsos survey on Iran found overwhelming views that the war in Iran has been harmful: 86% said it’s bad for the U.S. cost of living, 65% said it’s bad for U.S. national security, and 72% said it’s bad for the United States’ reputation abroad.
Still, a larger share of respondents saw the conflict as improving China’s global position (36%) than as benefiting U.S. national security (32%), U.S. relations with allies (24%), the global economy (14%) or the U.S. cost of living (10%).
Partisan splits on the Iran war were pronounced. Solid majorities of Republicans said the war has been good for U.S. national security (63%) and for Israel’s security (60%); about half of Republicans said it improved the U.S. reputation and relationships with allies. Democrats and independents were much less likely to view the war as beneficial: only 8% of Democrats and 29% of independents said it was good for U.S. national security, and only 5% of Democrats and 20% of independents said it helped the U.S. reputation.
Israel remains a divisive issue. Six in 10 Republicans said the war has been good for Israel’s security, while only about 20% of Democrats and about one-third of independents agreed. Most Republicans (58%) saw Israel playing a positive role in the Middle East; by contrast, 83% of Democrats and 70% of independents characterized Israel’s role as negative. The surveys reflect a broader trend of shifting sympathies in the U.S., with growing support for Palestinians in parts of the electorate, especially among Democrats.
Attention to foreign affairs
Relatively few Americans follow foreign policy news closely. The China survey found 42% follow U.S.-China relations at least somewhat closely. By comparison, 70% said they follow the economy closely, 67% follow news about the war in Iran, 65% follow immigration, and 43% follow the Russia-Ukraine war.
Methodology
Both surveys were conducted by Ipsos using its online panel. The China-focused survey was fielded March 13–15 with 1,025 adults (margin of error +/- 3.1 percentage points). The Iran questions were asked in a May 1–3 survey of 1,018 adults (margin of error +/- 3.2 percentage points).
Bottom line: Americans broadly regard China as an economic competitor with global ambitions, but most prefer to keep trade flowing and to reduce tariffs that raise consumer prices. At the same time, significant partisan divides remain on trade policy, national security implications of the Iran war, and views on Israel’s role in the Middle East.