The risk depends mostly on where exactly you wish to protect your trademark.
Let's say you want to trademark your brand name in the EU and the US, and you find a highly similar trademark registered in China. If you are not planning to register your brand in China, the similar brand should not pose an issue in the EU and the US, as the brand is only protected in China and has no protection in other countries.
In case you are planning to sell your goods or services in the Chinese market, the owner of the similar trademark might reach out to you and ask you to stop your commercial activities since this would be considered trademark infringement.
One more thing to keep in mind: Before you proceed, make sure the company owning the trademark in China doesn't own the same trademark in your countries of interest as well.