Brian P. Klein

Opinion | Foreigners are leaving China in droves. Does the nation want or need them any more?

The exodus is a sign not only of the heavy toll exacted by China’s zero-Covid policies, but also of the country’s turn inwards as it focuses on domestic expansion

Foreigners are no longer considered vital to the nation’s progress. But the loss of the very people with knowledge, experience and connections to China is significant

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Students and expatriates prepare to fly abroad after Shanghai Pudong airport opens up to a handful of international flights on June 30. Photo: Ann Cao

Brian P. Klein

Published: 12:30am, 5 Jul 2022

Every other day or so, someone is posting about their exit from China on social media. What started as a trickle a few years back has now turned into an exodus of foreigners. They are heading to their home countries after years, sometimes decades, abroad. By many accounts, they won’t be going back.

From exasperation at Beijing’s onerous zero-Covid policies that force people to remain inside for weeks on end, to corporate closures over supply chain issues, the outflow is real. Add to these disquieting events a darkening view of foreigners.

While rising standards of living have brought with them a healthy dose of domestic confidence, nationalistic fervour has shifted sentiment to unnecessarily negative levels. This begs the question, does China want foreigners any more?

The effects of changing political winds are being felt by international firms. European and American business surveys tell the same story of a toughening domestic China market. And the trade numbers back them up. Kearney’s annual reshoring study showed that China’s percentage of US manufacturing imports fell to 55 per cent in 2021, down from 66 per cent in 2018.

Part of this is certainly a result of Covid-19-induced supply chain and shipping problems. But many manufacturers have shifted production to countries like Vietnam not only for logistics issues, but because of rising Chinese domestic wages and a domestic environment tilted increasingly out of level.