More Foreigners Moving To China For Work

Europeans at a Beijing job fair. The number of expats looking for work in China is on the rise, as is the number of expats employed by Chinese and multinational companies in the country. Photo by China Daily.

Expats are moving to China for work. In the not so distant future, the market will be more concerned about what plays in Beijing than what plays in Peoria. Business executives at the biggest multinationals will be more interested in what Chinese consumers are buying than what their counterparts in an aging and – currently declining — America are buying. Recently, the China Daily reported that the number of Europeans looking for jobs in China has risen. It’s nothing compared to the U.S., but it is rising. And the trend is likely to continue. Figures released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security showed that 231,700 foreigners were employed in China at the end of 2010, compared with 223,000 in 2009. Foreigners are finding jobs in China on the back of its strong economy, which is performing vastly better than that of the United States or Europe, said Carter Yang, managing director of Robert Walters Talent Consulting Ltd China. “This year, China’s average gross domestic product increase is about 8 to 10 percent. This has created more opportunities, especially within the financial services, pharmaceutics as well as the retail industry,” Carter Yang, managing director of Robert Walters Talent Consulting Ltd China told the China Daily. “The country provides an abundance of bigger career platforms and opportunities. We have witnessed both international investment companies and local Chinese companies focusing on expansion plans within the past decade. Besides the strong need for international talent to grow their businesses in China, they also require top-tier candidates for their businesses in international markets.” The talent consultant added there was a rising trend for local Chinese companies capable and willing to offer international compensation packages and benefits that are targeted for expatriates working in China. Helen Fung, managing consultant of recruiting company SHL Group Ltd China, shared the same view. “Talent mobility across national borders is a common practice that most multinationals in China are experiencing today. At the same time, more Chinese national and private enterprises are expanding internationally and need to recruit top talents from different parts of the world,” she told the paper. Kenneth Rapoza 17 Oct 2011 http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2011/10/17/more-foreigners-moving-to-china-for-work/