Views of China in several of the world's most advanced economies have plummeted since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, a new survey found, including 86% of Japanese who view their Asian neighbor negatively.
A Pew Research study showed dramatic increases in unfavorable perceptions of China among all the so-called "Group of Seven" nations – the largest IMF-advanced economies in the world – except Italy, plus Australia, South Korea, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Spain.
Italy's perception of China has largely remained unchanged since Pew began the surveys in 2002. Still, 62% viewed the country very or somewhat unfavorably.
A majority of people from Belgium and Denmark, two countries added to the survey this year, also had negative views of China.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes the respiratory illness COVID-19, which has infected nearly 40 million and is been related to more than 1 million deaths worldwide, is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China. Many countries have been critical of China for what it considered the slow release of information about the virus and its spread.
Among the 14 countries surveyed, 73% had a very or somewhat unfavorable opinion of China.
In Japan, 52% had a "very unfavorable" view of China.
Besides Japan, 85% of Swedes, 81% of Australians, 75% of South Koreans, and 74% of Britons viewed China very or somewhat unfavorably. The biggest jump was Australia, where 24% now view China more unfavorably than they did last year. Britain showed a 19% increase.
In the United States, 73% view China unfavorably, a 20% increase since President Donald Trump took office in 2017 and up 13% since last year, Pew noted.
"Across the 14 nations surveyed, a median of 61% say China has done a bad job dealing with the outbreak [of the novel coronavirus]," Pew said. "This is many more than say the same of the way the COVID-19 pandemic was handled by their own country or by international organizations like the World Health Organization or the European Union."
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