A record 82 percent of Americans hold an unfavorable view of China amid increasing perceptions that Beijing is becoming the leading global power, a survey said Thursday.

The Pew Research Center, which surveyed 3,581 US adults in March, also found that 40 percent of Americans have "very" unfavorable views of China, with feelings more negative among conservatives.

Negative views of China have sharply risen in the United States over the past five years amid tensions over trade, defense, human rights and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The study found that, while most Americans still view their country as the top global power, the portion who believe China has surpassed the United States has grown sharply.

Forty-three percent of Americans said China was the world's leading economic power, up 11 percentage points from two years ago, while 19 percent said China was the top military power, a rise of 13 points.

With four times the US population, China is widely forecast to surpass the United States as the largest economy in total Gross Domestic Product within the next decade, although the Asian power has recently seen growth cool due to Covid restrictions and efforts to tame a soaring property market.

A recent survey also found sharply deteriorating US views on Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine.

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