Recruiting in China

Out-of-work finance professionals in the UK and US have a new reason for optimism about their employment prospects - especially if they speak Mandarin.

Chinese financial institutions are set to exploit the widespread job losses in western financial centres as a result of the credit crunch by next month embarking on a hunt for financial experts willing to relocate.

The Shanghai Financial Service Office has told state media the city is sending a delegation to New York, Chicago and London to recruit specialists in risk management, asset management, product research and development, macro-economics and policy analysis.

The head of human resources at the office said at least 27 financial institutions in Shanghai, China's commercial and financial hub, had listed more than 170 vacancies specifically targeting foreigners.

The global financial turmoil has led to tens of thousands of job losses in financial services.

London and New York have been hit especially hard, while many of those still in employment fear for their future.

However, the salaries on offer in China are unlikely to meet international standards and a preference for those who understand and speak Mandarin Chinese will probably rule out many potential candidates.

In addition, China's unique political environment, in which the Communist party exercises ultimate control over all aspects of the financial, legal and commercial systems, means foreign passport-holders are unlikely to be given senior positions in state-run institutions.

China Investment Corp, the country's sovereign wealth fund, launched a global recruitment drive earlier this year but it was unable to match the salaries on offer in the City or on Wall Street.

Shanghai officials said organisations interested in recruiting in the UK and US included the nascent China Financial Futures Exchange, the Pudong financial district government, and state-run securities agencies, insurance companies and also banks.

The delegation will also try to recruit an assistant to the president of Shanghai Financial University, a chief economist for the SFU's International Finance Research Institute and a dean for its International Finance and Insurance School.

Academic posts are more likely to be offered to

foreigners as such positions are considered less politically sensitive.

China's state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission has said it encourages the country's largest state companies to recruit internationally, but the number of foreign employees at those companies is still negligible.

All senior managers above a certain level at state companies are appointed by the secretive Communist party personnel department, regardless of the wishes of board directors or share-holders.