Survey: About 70% of CEOs reject U.S. tariff policies

Vessels under construction at a shipyard in Rongcheng, East China's Shandong province. (Photo by Li Xinjun/For China Daily)

Approximately 70 percent of surveyed CEOs disapprove of the United States' tariff policies, according to a report titled, "Nearly 70 percent of CEOs disapprove of Trump's tariffs: Survey", published by The Hill on Saturday.

About 67 percent of CEOs in the US shares disagreed with the US tariff agenda, and 76 percent believed the sweeping import taxes would hurt their companies, according to the survey conducted by the Chief Executive magazine, which included 329 CEOs and business owners.

Meanwhile, the survey also revealed a decline in business confidence, reaching its lowest point since the start of the pandemic in 2020.

Business leaders' confidence in the current business climate dropped to 4.6 in April, down from 5.0 in March, on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 represents "poor" and 10 means "excellent," the report said.

Tariffs and the uncertainty surrounding US tariff policies will lead to challenging economic times over the next year or two, said Tim Zimmerman, president and CEO of Mitchell Metal Products, according to the report.

The survey was conducted from April 8-10 this year.