An annual survey indicates that more Chinese and Japanese people hold favorable impressions about each others' countries, according to the China Daily website.

The survey, jointly sponsored by the Chinese English newspaper, China Daily, and Genron NPO, a Japanese think tank, polled 1,617 Chinese residents across five major cities and 1,007 Chinese college students, as well as 1,000 Japanese people stopped on the street and 500 Japanese intellectuals.

The survey was conducted for the sixth straight years.

This year's poll shows 38.3 percent of grassroots Chinese citizens feel good about Japan, 5.7 percentage points higher than in 2009. About 45.2 percent of Chinese students have a good impression about Japan.

Likewise, 27.3 percent of Japanese grassroots citizens and 51.4 percent of Japanese intellectuals feel good about China, both slightly higher than last year.

For the Chinese respondents who do not like Japan, the history of the Japanese invasion of China ranks as the top reason. Additionally, the majority of Chinese students disapprove of Japan's unrepentant attitude about the war, according to the survey.

However, both people hold out a rosier outlook about the future of Sino-Japanese relations.

Roughly 60 percent of Chinese respondents, 40 percent of Japanese citizens and over 60 percent of Japanese intellectuals believe the bilateral relationship will grow better, which are all rates registering higher than last year.

More than 40 percent of Chinese respondents picture electronic products or sakura, when thinking about Japan, rather than the Nanjing massacre where more than 300,000 citizens of the city were massacred by Japanese soldiers in 1937.

Significantly, this is the first time in three years that the Nanjing massacre does not dominates Chinese views about Japan.

Most Japanese respondents associate China with Chinese cuisine and the Great Wall, as well as Chinese economic growth and the Beijing Olympic Games.

Additionally, 57.1 percent of Chinese citizens and 45 percent of Japanese citizens are confident about China's economic boom, even as they expect it to rival the United States by 2050.

The survey is conducted by the Beijing-Tokyo Forum, an annual gathering of senior government officials and representatives from Chinese and Japanese non-governmental organizations, designed to improve communications and understanding between the two countries.

Sunday marks the 65th anniversary of the end of the Japanese invasion of China.