Who Gets the Better Deal, Western or Eastern World Expats?

I recently came across a very interesting article in The Economist entitled “A Tale of Two Expats.”  As many of our readers are expats or at least know someone who is an expat, I figured this would be of interest to many of you.  The article specifically talks about the lives of Western expats in China and Chinese expats in the West, but I think many of the issues they discuss applies to any expat, no matter where you live now and where you come from. 

The article cites two men, one anonymously named “James Smith, an Britist expat in China, and the other named Mr. So, a Chinese expat in London.  The article generally takes the stance that life is easier for Western expats in China then it is for Chinese expats in the West. 

Mr. Smith talks about the difficulties of working and living in China such as the strict and inconsistent rules, the highly polluted air, and the many examples of government intervention in business.  There are many pleasantries that come along with these drawbacks, though, such as the higher salary, cheaper cost of living, and the ease of doing business in an economy that is quickly growing in the midst of a global recession. 

On the other hand, Mr. So has come from a country with a booming economy and low cost of living and moved to a country with a failing economy and in a city that is among one of the most expensive in the world.  Because the West doesn’t cater to the Chinese like the Chinese caters to Westerners, many Chinese expats have trouble getting around if they cannot speak English, which many of them don’t.  On the other hand, many Chinese speak English and Mr. Smith can always find his way around because the subways and roads also have signs in English. 

Many Chinese Executive expats go to the West because they are forced to, where as Westerners who go to China do it because they want a piece of the quickly growing economy, and because of the lucrative expat packages.  Chinese expats generally do not get allowances for their families, so they are often alone, where as Western expats can generally bring their families and put their kids in a nice private school.  Perhaps these reasons are why many Western countries ranked so low in the 2010 Expat Survey.

Do you have any input to share about the negative/positive aspects of being an expat?  If so, please share them in our comments section below! 

By @StanaMark 

5 News Snippets From Around the World

India: For once, a Wikileak that is actually helping foreign relations.  A cable of former US envoy to New Dehli David Mulford was released recently, in which Mulford praises India’s 150 million Muslims and the way they have been able to create a culture which shuns extremism and shields children from recruiters.  Mulford acknowledges the fact that Indian Muslims do face discrimination and poverty, but commends their strong spirit and says that he believes that the education system in India does a superior job of integrating Muslims into the country’s culture.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-and-its-Muslims-get-a-thumbs-up-from-US/articleshow/7118795.cms

Bangladesh: Bangladesh will honor over 500 foreigners for their assistance in the 1971 Liberation War at its 40^th Victory Day celebration next year.  Included in the honor will be 226 Indians and 40 Pakistanis.  Those who are honored will receive a gold crest and honorary Bangladesh citizenship.

http://www.sify.com/news/bangladesh-to-honour-226-indians-for-support-in-1971-liberation-war-news-national-kmrn4effjbb.html

Nigeria: Femi Babafemi of Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency EFCC said that the country has dropped charges against former US Vice President/CEO of controversial company Halliburton Dick Cheney and Halliburton owned company KBR.  Looks like Cheney and the rest of the folks at KBR/Halliburton may have known that the bribery charges wouldn’t end will for them in court, as they settled outside of the court for about $250 million.  Nigeria charged that KBR executives had paid over $180 million to obtain illegal contracts for the $6 billion construction of a natural gas plant. 

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/93407/20101217/nigeria-cheney-corruption-bribery-halliburton-kbr.htm

Brazil: While the rest of the world is drowning in economic turmoil, somehow Brazil has been absolutely thriving in these tough times.  Today it was announced that their unemployment rate has hit a record low for the fourth straight month.  In November, Brazil’s unemployment dropped to a ridiculously low 5.7 percent, a .4 percent drop from October and a 1.7 drop since November ’09.  The Brazilian government says that they expect the economy to grow by 7.5 percent this year alone.

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/headline_news/article.jsp?content=b5436786&utm_source=markets&utm_medium=rss

Kenya: Staying ahead the worldwide green movement, Kenya Power and Lighting is teaming with Standard Bank to develop clean energy projects to sell through the UN clean energy initiative.  In this initiative, companies in developing nations receive carbon credits for creating ways to prevent the release of carbon dioxide.  The project has already prevent 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the environment by giving out 1.25 million free energy saving light bulbs across the country.  Ultimately, the carbon emissions saved through the project could earn the company over 100 million shillings according to KPLC’s CEO Joseph Njoroge.

http://af.reuters.com/article/investingNews/idAFJOE6BG0B720101217

By @StanaMark