THE majority of American companies in China say they are hurting from the escalating U.S.-China trade spat, reporting increased costs and lower profits, a survey showed Thursday.

The American Chamber of Commerce in China survey polled more than 430 U.S. companies operating in the country and provides the first detailed look at how Donald Trump’s trade fight has harmed business.

Trump’s first round of tariffs this summer hit US$50 billion in Chinese goods like high-end technology parts and manufactured goods, while China fired back dollar-for-dollar at U.S. soybeans, autos and other farm goods.

But U.S. firms are feeling whiplash from both sides as they sell and make goods in China, with the United States’ border tax increase and China’s counter-punch hurting more than 60 percent of businesses, according to the poll.

It also showed looming tariffs on US$200 billion in Chinese goods are expected to expand the pain to three-quarters of firms.

Chamber president Alan Beebe said the poll would provide officials in Washington and Beijing with facts on how the tariffs are playing out.

Businesses received potentially good news Wednesday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin proposed a fresh round of trade talks between the economic superpowers to avert a full-blown trade war.

The talks could stave off the growing costs for American firms, though the two sides have failed to reach an agreement over several rounds of negotiations in spring and summer.

The unpredictability around the trade fight is hampering investment decisions as investors need stability to make sound decisions, Beebe said.

Roughly a third of firms are shifting supply chains out of China, or the United States, and an equal proportion are delaying or canceling investment decisions, the survey showed.

Respondents of the survey were primarily in manufacturing, with automotive, machinery and chemical producers expected to take the biggest hit from future tariffs. Profit losses, higher manufacturing costs and decreased product demand were some of the biggest downsides of the tariffs, according to the report. Nearly one-third of respondents are considering delaying or canceling investments, especially those in the agribusiness industry.

The data, when coupled with the results of a similar survey of European firms, is troubling for the health of China’s economy.

The survey released Thursday by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China polled nearly 200 European firms doing business in China and found 17 percent are delaying investment or expansion plans, while 5 percent are moving production out of the United States and almost 7 percent are shifting output from China.

The trade fight impact is overwhelmingly negative, said Mats Harborn, president of the EU Chamber.

Some 42 percent of American firms report their goods are becoming less attractive to Chinese buyers. Beebe said that could be the consequences of price increases or the psychology around how people make purchasing decisions.

“Chinese customers just see too much uncertainty around buying American and as a result they shift to alternatives,” Beebe said.

About half of American firms are making less money, and a similar amount are reporting higher production costs, according to the survey.

Some of their employees are paying the price, with 12 percent of firms cutting staff.

(SD-Agencies)