"Young people working for foreign financial corporations in China are lucky," said John Grumbar, CEO of Egon Zehnder International, one of the world's top five human resources companies. "They enjoy higher salaries than their peers in local financial companies and often get surprise promotions."

Grumbar attributed this phenomenon to the limited financial talent pool in China.

"In the United States and other countries, financial corporations will have stricter requirements for their job candidates. But in China, they do not have many choices," he said.

Wang Jiaqi, Chinese partner of Egon Zehnder, pinpointed three reasons for the lack of senior financial personnel in China.

First, Foreign financial corporations need their senior managers to acquaint themselves with a wide range of financial products. However, the limited variety of products currently on the Chinese market makes it difficult for local talents to meet their foreign employers' requirements.

Second, financial professionals, especially those who specialize in risk management, are still scarce in China.

Third, there is a lack of senior managers who are capable of comprehensive management in China. Foreign financial corporations have to recruit overseas talents to work for their China operations.

For more details, please read the full story in Chinese (http://www.caijing.com.cn/newcn/home/todayspec/2007-10-25/35186.shtml).

(China.org.cn October 26, 2007)