From a US embassy reception to cafes and bars in major Chinese cities, American expats gathered from early on Wednesday morning to watch the outcome of the election.

It seems young US nationals are more supportive of Obama, a cafe manager in Beijing said.

Some US expats also told China Daily they chose to support Obama as he is friendlier toward China and will help ensure stable relations between the world's two biggest economies.

Joseph Halvorson, 27, said he had mailed his vote for Obama, as he liked his bill that allows people under 26 to be covered by their parents' healthcare plan.

Halvorson, a reporter for the Beijing Review, was attending an election results party held by the US embassy in a hotel. Hundreds of people, including Chinese and other nationalities, were at the event, where five large screens fed live TV coverage from the US.

Edward Han, an American national of Chinese origin and director of Asian Affairs with the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association based in Reston, Virginia, voted for Obama, saying "he deserves another four years".

"He took over an awful mess from his predecessor," he said. "And the economy was not good in the last four years. Considering all these, Obama has actually done a quite good job."

Andrew Bradner, vice-president of marketing and strategy in China for Schneider Electric, said he liked Obama's foreign policy, which was "more engaging on a global level", while on social policies he agreed more with Romney.

At the Bridge Cafe, in the Haidian district, surrounded by several famous universities, the first customer arrived just after 7 am.

"FREE BEER if Obama Wins!" read the cafe's promotion for the event.

"Now we have more than 100 US nationals here watching CNN, and they are quite enthusiastic," said cafe manager Nell Chen, adding that it was her American business partner's idea to hold the event.

"He wants the US expats to feel the atmosphere of the election, even though they are staying far away in Beijing," Chen said. "It seems that many youngsters support Obama, while senior people are more in favor of Mitt Romney."

The atmosphere at Camel Sports Bar in Xuhui, Shanghai was also heated, with more than 80 US nationals, mainly aged 20 to 30, gathering to show support for Obama.

The bar has said in its advertisement that is especially welcomed those who voted for Obama, though the boss is an Australian.

"The atmosphere here is even hotter than that in the US," Gavin Chen, from North Carolina, told China Daily. "There are not many US nationals in Shanghai, so they choose to gather together to wait for the result, while in the US people tend to stay at home."

Deng Zhangyu and Liu Yedan contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at chengguangjin@chinadaily.com.cn and lixiaokun@chinadaily.com.cn