Measure
Snapshot
China
Ranked 2 of 26 for comprehensive power, with an overall score of 72.5 out of 100.
Lost 2.1 points (−3% change) in overall score in 2023.
Measure
Analysis
China is a superpower in Asia.
China’s score declined by 2.1 points relative to 2021, the largest drop in this edition of any Asia Power Index country.
China is the highest ranked country on two measures: economic relationships and diplomatic influence. China has consistently led the Index’s ranking for economic relationships, reflecting its strong trade and investment ties with other countries in the region.
China regained its top ranking for diplomatic influence in 2022, reflecting its extensive diplomatic engagement with Asia Power Index countries and more tempered expert views on the Biden administration’s regional engagement.
China’s weakest performance is in its defence networks, however it has continued to improve in this measure, rising to seventh place, as compared to 12th in 2018.
In 2022, the United States displaced China as the top ranked country for economic capability. This was caused by a large decline in China’s global connectivity as its zero-Covid policies continued to isolate it from the world. These policies also depressed China’s score for cultural influence, where it lost approximately 10.3 points.
China exerts slightly more influence in the region than expected given its available resources, as indicated by the country’s positive power gap score, though this power gap was smaller than in 2021.
Read more analysis in the Key Findings report. Explore further results in the Scores section.
Annual changes
Bilateral Influence
Bilateral trade, current dollars (2020)
Countries that influence China
Globally, which countries does China do most of its trade with?
Countries influenced by China
Which countries in the region rely most on trade with China?
Scores
Comprehensive power
A country’s weighted average across eight measures of power
2nd
72.5
Rank
Change
Trend
Score
Economic capability
Economic size and attributes with the most geopolitical relevance
2nd
−1
87.0
Military capability
Conventional military strength
2nd
68.1
Resilience
Capacity to deter real or potential threats to state stability
3rd
70.4
Future resources
Projected distribution of future economic, military and demographic resources
2nd
72.9
Economic relationships
The capacity to exercise influence and leverage through economic interdependencies
1st
98.3
Defence networks
Defence partnerships that act as force multipliers of military capability
7th
+1
23.7
Diplomatic influence
The extent and standing of a state’s foreign relations
1st
+1
91.5
Cultural influence
Ability to shape international public opinion through cultural appeal and interaction
2nd
47.4