Survey shows rich Chinese confident of China's economy

HANGZHOU - Over 90 percent of rich Chinese are optimistic about China's economy, according to the results of a survey released Thursday.

The survey, conducted by Hurun Research Institute, polled 449 individuals with personal assets over 10 million yuan ($1.45 million).

Only nine percent of the interviewees said they were pessimistic about China's economic future in the next two years, the report says. The figure was down four percentage points from last year. Interviewees over the age of 45 were found to be more optimistic than their younger peers.

China's economy grew 6.7 percent in the first three quarters of 2016. Analysts have forecast China's 2016 annual growth will be at 6.7 percent, significantly higher than the growth rate of other major world economies.

The country's fast growth in more than three decades has created a booming middle class.

According to research by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a think tank, the proportion of the population earning upper-middle and high incomes in China will expand from 10 percent to 35 percent by 2030.

The Hurun survey also sheds some light on the rich Chinese's life-style.

"Work pressure has increased; satisfaction with life decreased," the survey report says.

Rich Chinese favored e-wallet service Alipay over credit cards to settle payments and the Maldives was a top overseas travel destination, according to the survey.