Jim Cramer says investors should focus less on how China affects American stocks

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Monday advised investors to think less about how China affects American stocks.

“No matter how disappointing the growth numbers we see out of the Chinese economy — and they are plenty disappointing — people keep wanting to buy American stocks that are seen as having major Chinese exposure,” Cramer said. “American investors simply won’t give up. They just have to have something that stands inside the thesis that China remains the promised land for anyone nimble enough to sell into their economy, even as their economy is falling apart.”

Cramer highlighted construction equipment manufacturer Caterpillar, which he said is a “terrific story,” but not a “China story.” Caterpillar is more affected by factors such as the U.S. oil, infrastructure and data center markets, as well as global mineral markets, he said.

Cramer also said retail behemoth Nike should not be considered a China stock, because even though the company is certainly popular there, it only makes up 14% of the business, versus 42% for North America and 26% for Europe.

But Cramer acknowledged China does have an effect on some companies, such as Ralph Lauren, which is seeing significant growth in its Chinese market. He also mentioned Starbucks, which he said has plans to open thousands of new locations in China over the next few years. He said he supports buying stock in these companies as long as their business in America continues to hold up but warned that investors can no longer sink money into businesses based solely on their activities in China.

“Go ahead, knock yourself out imagining how China exposure can boost the growth of American companies,” Cramer said. “But I think you’d be better off finding a Chinese company that can accelerate its growth by being in America, because we are in much better shape than they are right now.”

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Disclaimer: The CNBC Investing Club Charitable Trust holds shares of Starbucks and Caterpillar.