Manufacturers' performance is closely correlated with that of the broader economy. According to the survey, expectations for revenue and profitability increases among manufacturers stood at 48 percent and 39 percent, respectively.
The percentage of businesses concerned about a shortage of orders stood at 33 percent, the lowest point in the past two years.
Prospects for European and US growth will facilitate exports from China. According to the General Administration of Customs, exports rose 7 percent year-on-year in May, a significant improvement from recent months,
"We believe that with further economic stability, Chinese businesses will see stronger momentum in their development," said Xu.
Li Fang, a senior manager at a plastics and molding plant in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, said the plant aims to increase production capacity in the second half to cope with rising orders from Europe.
Grant Thornton found that globally, business optimism has risen to 46 percent. The surge in optimism is being driven by increasing confidence in the European Union (at 43 percent, the highest since 2006), North America (at 73 percent, the highest since 2004) and the Group of Seven (at 53 percent).
The data suggest that the developed economies have maintained a strong recovery trend.
Also, Indian businesses are the most optimistic worldwide (86 percent). Ireland, the United Kingdom and Germany occupy three of the top four positions for optimism, and all these three economies are expecting to see big export growth.
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