An employee assembles fiber optic cable products at a factory in Huaibei, East China’s Anhui Province. With the arrival of the 5G era, enterprises throughout the city have taken the opportunity to speed up the production of optic cable products. The annual output for optic cable products is approximately 100 million yuan ($14.15 million) for the city. Photo: CNSphoto

The majority of Chinese citizens are positive about future income growth despite short-term pressure from the COVID-19 epidemic, a newly-released survey report has shown.

Up to 80.6 percent of the survey respondents are either optimistic or neutral about the likelihood of increased income in the next one or two years, according to a report released by Licaitong, tech giant Tencent's wealth-management platform, on the post-epidemic financial status and investment tendencies of Chinese citizens.

In seeking to counter the economic impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, some said they would increase their savings, while 52.9 percent of respondents said they would find ways to expand their income, and 41.3 percent said they would consider investment and wealth management.

However, 71.7 percent of respondents said they feel inclined to be conservative in making future investments, as the appetite for risks has faltered in the wake of the epidemic, according to the report.

Wu Chaoming, vice head of Chasing International Economic Institute, said the trend for China's long-term stable and sound development remains unchanged, and the positive sentiment is in line with the ongoing gradual improvement in economic fundamentals.

But he also warned that the epidemic would significantly affect consumer sentiment, which could, in turn, result in a stronger willingness to save money, with a certain impact on consumption.