A new regional survey has found that people in Latin America now view China as a more positive global influence than the United States, marking the first time this has happened since the poll began in 1995.
The 2026 Latinobarómetro survey, published on October 2, found that 65 percent of respondents across 17 Latin American countries considered China’s influence positive, compared with 57 percent who said the same about the United States.
Support for China has increased significantly since 2020, when 48 percent of respondents viewed its global influence positively. By contrast, positive perceptions of US influence fell from 60 percent in 2020 to 57 percent in 2026.
Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic were the only countries surveyed where respondents viewed US influence more positively than China’s.
Despite China’s stronger rating on global influence, the United States remained more popular when respondents were asked about their overall opinions of the two countries. About 63 percent said they had a favourable view of the US, compared with 58 percent for China. The US figure was down from 73 percent in 2024.
The survey also examined reactions to the US military capture of Venezuela’s former leader Nicolás Maduro. A majority of respondents in every country except Argentina said they approved of the operation.
However, opinions were divided over its impact on Venezuela. About 35 percent said Maduro’s removal had benefited the country, while 28 percent said it had harmed the country.
The survey was conducted by Latinobarómetro, a Chile-based nonprofit organisation that regularly studies public opinion across Latin America on issues including democracy, the economy, security and migration.
The 2026 survey involved approximately 19,200 face-to-face interviews across 17 countries between May 7 and June 17. It has a reported margin of error of 1 percent.
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