Chinese attitudes towards Australia have plummeted amid souring tensions between the two nations, according to a new poll released by Beijing. The poll conducted by state-controlled newspaper The Global Times found China's impression of Australia has fallen by 9.7 per cent in the past year. More than 40 per cent of the 2,067 respondents considered Australia to be a military, political or ideological threat. Beijing has in the past 12 months launched a series of damaging trade strikes against Australia after Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. 'The average Chinese attitude toward Australia turned out to be 55.6 points – on a scale of 0 to 100 – in the poll,' the report said. China's impression of Australia has fallen by 9.7 per cent in the past year, according to a new poll conducted by a state-controlled newspaper. Pictured a queue of people on their phones in Hong Kong on Thursday The poll surveyed 2,067 respondents across 10 Chinese cities between the age of 18 and 70 on a range of China-Australia diplomatic issues Chinese soldiers during a parade in Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 2019. Beijing and Canberra have been at the centre of a tense trade dispute in the past 12 months after Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic '[That figure dropped] from 65.3 points from 2020 when the Global Times Research Center did a similar survey for the first time.' The poll surveyed 2,067 respondents across 10 Chinese cities between the age of 18 and 70. When asked to name the biggest obstacle affecting China-Australia relations, 45.6 per cent blamed factors involving the US. Another 35.4 per cent said ideological differences between China and Australia were the cause of the rift. Australian Studies Center of East China Normal University director Chen Hong hit out at the Morrison government's rhetoric for inflaming public opinion. 'Australian media and politicians have been smearing and criticising China on every front, be it economy, Covid-19 or other issues,' he said. 'Yet Australia has been less frequently mentioned in Chinese publications.' Fewer than one in five Australians trust China to act responsibly in the world and even fewer endorse the leadership of Xi Jinping, new polling shows The figures mirror souring attitudes towards China among 2,200 Australians surveyed by The Lowy Institute's 2021 annual poll, the results of which were released this week. Fewer than one in five Australians trust China to act responsibly in the world and even fewer endorse the leadership of Xi Jinping, the poll showed. More than 60 per cent of Australians also see Beijing as an increasing security threat, responding negatively to Chinese investment in Australia and Chinese environmental policies, governance and military activity. The poll of more than 2200 Australians found 16 per cent of respondents trusted China 'a great deal' or 'somewhat' in its international conduct - almost 40 percentage points lower than in 2018. Prime Minister Scott Morrison in London on June 15. Australian Studies Center of East China Normal University director Chen Hong said the Morrison government had inflamed public opinion Likewise, just one in 10 Australians professed 'a lot' or 'some' confidence in Mr Xi to do the right thing regarding world affairs, halving in 12 months. Some 63 per cent of respondents said they now see China as 'more of a security threat' to Australia than an economic partner, while more than half said Australia-China relations pose a critical national security threat. Chinese investment in Australia (79 per cent), Chinese environmental policies (79 per cent), China's autocratic governance model (92 per cent) and China's assertive regional military activity (93 per cent) were viewed unfavourably. China also remains angry with Australia over foreign interference and investment laws and the decision to ban Huawei from the country's 5G rollout Almost half of respondents said Australia should boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to China's human rights record in places like Xinjiang. China's trade restrictions on Australian produce include bans and tariffs on exports including coal, grain and seafood. China also remains angry with Australia over foreign interference and investment laws and the decision to ban Huawei from the country's 5G rollout. All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility