A public opinion poll of China's emerging urban middle class found that high-quality consumer electronics lead the list of most desired American products. American cigarettes and liquor drew the least interest.

The survey, sponsored by UPS and conducted by Research International, involved 1,140 Chinese consumers between the ages of 20 and 59 in six cities. UPS commissioned the research to better understand the Chinese marketplace – to help its customers learn which U.S. products are most in demand, and to stay abreast of consumer trends within China as the company develops its service offerings.

Conducted by Research International, the survey was a quantitative study of 1,140 Chinese consumers in six Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenyang, Chengdu and Wuhan. Respondents were all between the ages of 20 and 59 and have high household income levels in China (monthly income of CNY 3,000 or above in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, and CNY 2,000 or above in Shenyang, Chengdu and Wuhan). The survey was conducted as computer-aided telephone interviews between June 2 and 16, 2005.

53 percent of those polled want a broader selection of American electronics. The most likely purchases this year are digital cameras, laptop computers and video/digital recording devices.

45 percent would like to see more U.S. durable products including refrigerators, washers/dryers and microwaves.

When making purchasing decisions, 60 percent of respondents cited quality as the most important purchase decision factor. That was followed by price/value at 18 percent, which was more important to older respondents than to younger ones. The country of origin and manufacturing location both fell far below quality in importance at 4 percent and 3 percent, respectively.