21st century global leader is U.S.: poll

Which country will be the most influential in the next century? The answer, if you guessed: the United States.

According to a recent survey by Citizen Watch Co., a leading watchmaker, nearly 40 percent of those who responded to the poll named the U.S. as the nation to lead the world in the 21st century.

Japan came second with about 31 percent, followed by China with 15.4 percent. The questionnaires were sent to 81,000 Japanese regarding the prospects of the post-Cold War next century and the drastically changing international situation.

Citizen compiled the report based on answers from 2,400 selected respondents from age groups broken down into people under 29, those in their 30s, 40s and over 50 years old. The company selected 600 answers from each group.

Behind the U.S., Japan and China as the most influential nations in the next century were Germany, England, France and India. Russia came in 17th, according to the poll.