So goes the thinking among top US executives this summer - or at least it should.
For China is proving one of the few bright spots during the US earnings season.
The country's super-sized stimulus package is starting to support demand for everything from computers to construction equipment.
While the results season is far from over, the list of companies that have cited China as a positive is already notable: Intel Corp, Caterpillar Inc, Coca-Cola, Alcoa Inc, Altera Corp and Cummins Inc, among others.
"I'm certainly glad I'm in China," John Watkins, chief executive of Cummins (China) Investment Co, said recently.
Not that business is all rosy in China.
Indeed, Cummins, the diesel engine manufacturer, expects to report a drop in sales in China this year. But the decline is likely to be far less that it will suffer globally.
United Technologies Corp (UTC), the world's largest maker of elevators and air conditioners, is among the companies expecting strong second-half results from China.
"China is recovering," UTC Chief Financial Officer Greg Hayes said after the company posted a lower second-quarter profit last Tuesday.
"As foreign direct investment picks up and the compounding effect of the stimulus picks up, we've got a lot of confidence that we're going to see a strong back half for Otis (elevators) as well as Carrier (air conditioners) in China and even a strong 2010," Hayes said. |
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