A man wearing a face mask walks in a shopping mall in London, Britain, on Nov. 23, 2020. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

British companies remain resilient, optimistic and committed to the Chinese market, and China's economic recovery has ensured that it remains a top priority for British businesses, despite rising labor costs, US-China trade tensions and other challenges, the British Chamber of Commerce said on Tuesday.

The chamber conducted a survey from mid-October to mid-November, covering 249 British companies in China, including 20 of the UK's leading FTSE 100 organizations and some small and medium-sized enterprises. The Sentiment Survey 2019-20 covered a wide range of sectors, from manufacturing and transportation to education and financing.

British companies remain positive about China's market potential, with 60 percent intending to increase investment during 2021. Media and publishing are among the sectors with the highest proportion of businesses increasing investment, at 86 percent. Other sectors planning to increase investment include transportation, logistics and distribution.

China's market potential is the primary reason for increased investment. Businesses in South China's Guangdong Province have the highest levels of planned investment, with an average increase of 11-25 percent. That may reflect the government's plans to develop the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

One-third of businesses - especially in financial services and healthcare — reported seeing some market opening in the past year, allowing them to offer more products and services in China.

As the only major economy that is growing after containment of the pandemic, China is attracting more global businesses as the government pursues further opening.

"Coming through this year, we see clearly the growth in China compared with the rest of the world as probably one of the few markets that is genuinely growing and we see that as we look into next year," St. John Moore, chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce in China, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

In stark contrast with the clear message of opening-up from the Chinese side, some politicians in the US and the UK continue to create risks with a crackdown on Chinese technology firms such as Huawei and interference in China's internal affairs related to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

"The British government's treatment of Huawei in 5G has sent a bad signal to Chinese companies. If Britain makes the 5G crackdown on Chinese companies a precedent rather than an exception, the fallout is bound to grow," Cui Hongjian, director of the Department of European Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Now, British businesses are calling for a clearer policy from the British government toward China.

"A clear China policy from the British government will bring about great predictability and that predictability is what British businesses generally want, because that allows us to invest with confidence in the market," said Moore.

Moore also expressed hope that that the incoming Biden administration will bring greater certainty in US-China relations and possibly UK-China relations as well. But experts said no major turning points will occur in China-UK relations next year.

"The main goal of China-UK relations next year will be stability. China will not be a priority for the UK, as it needs to manage relations with the US and the EU," said Cui.

If a China-EU bilateral investment treaty can be concluded timely, it will prompt the UK - which is outside the agreement - to offer more positive measures for bilateral relations, experts said.