More Koreans are choosing to leave China and take their businesses with them due to economic issues and fluctuations in the relationship between the two countries

More Koreans are choosing to leave China and take their businesses with them due to economic issues and fluctuations in the relationship between the two countries

By Zhang Xinyuan Source:Global Times Published: 2017/5/2

A restaurant in Wangjing that sells South Korean food has witnessed a large decline in the 

number of their customers. Photo: Zhang Xinyuan/GT

Ko Weon-young, a South Korean who has been living in China for over five years and currently works at an Internet company in Wangjing, the famous Korea Town located in Beijing, stood alone on the street in Wangjing watching construction workers and sighed.

The workers were taking down a sign that spelled Hanguo (South Korea) on a building in Wangjing. The building was originally called Hanguo Food Court, a signature place where all of the restaurants inside sold South Korean food. It's one of the most popular places in Beijing for both Chinese and South Korean foodies to get a taste of South Korea.

"In the past, when I looked at the words 'Korea Town,' it always gave me a feeling of home. The feeling is not the same anymore," Ko said. 

The South Korea signs are not the only thing that has vanished in the once prosperous Korea Town in Beijing. The area used to be the aggregation of South Korean expats, companies and the exemplification of the South Korean culture wave in China. According to a news portal guancha.cn report last month, the population of South Koreans in Beijing is over 100,000, and the majority of them live in Wangjing, and that is where it got the name Korea Town. 

However, recently, after the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) incident, many South Koreans chose to leave Beijing, and businesses in Korea Town were affected as well, according to a report by China Youth Daily in March.

The South Korean Food Court took down the words "South Korea." Photo: Zhang Xinyuan/GT

Shattered Chinese dreams

In March, South Korea and the US deployed the THAAD missile defense system on South Korea despite China's strong protest. 

Ko has always lived in Wangjing. After the THAAD incident, Ko clearly felt the change of atmosphere and attitude toward her from the local people. 

"The locals never did anything to me, but taxi drivers always ask me if I am from South Korea, and they complain to me and ask me why my country would install the THAAD missile defense system," Ko said. "When I take the elevator and say something in Korean, I feel that people get really quiet and watch me."

"Although it seems like nothing now, in the long term, I don't know if I can take the psychological pressure," she said.  

Another girl from South Korea who also works in an Internet company in Wangjing and prefers to remain anonymous said that the THAAD incident has shattered many South Koreans' Chinese dream. 

"In the past, we believed that studying Chinese is good for our future career development, because China and South Korea have a robust economic relationship," she said.

"But now we are not sure about the relationship between the two countries anymore. We don't know if there will be more new companies and new businesses in the future, so there goes our Chinese dream."

Korea E-Mart leaves china.  

edited by kcontents

The fall of Korea Town

The population of South Koreans in Wangjing has greatly decreased, and the Korea Town atmosphere is fading, according to Ko's observation. 

Five years ago, when Ko just arrived in Wangjing, all of the store fronts had signs with Korean words, but now many stores have removed the signs altogether. 

"Many of my friends and colleagues who have been living in China for a long time are moving back to South Korea," Ko said. 

It's mainly because of the political tension between the two countries, rising living costs in Beijing, less job opportunities and stricter visa policies, according to Ko.

The housing prices in Wangjing are increasing rapidly, and many people cannot afford the high cost of rent and leave the area. 

When Ko first arrived, the rent for an entire two-bedroom apartment was around 4,000 yuan ($580), but that would only pay for one room in an apartment today.  

Many South Koreans moved to other areas in Beijing, including the suburban area in Shunyi district and Yanjiao, a bordering town in Hebei Province.

The number of Korean companies also decreased in Wangjing and in China as a whole. Large Korean companies are starting to pull back, and small companies are just giving up, which leaves less job opportunities for the South Koreans in China.  

According to a report in November 2014 by caijing.com.cn, Shandong Province is an area with a high concentration of South Korean companies due to the proximity of the area to South Korea. However, in recent years, on average 500 South Korean companies are leaving the area each year. The main reason is the rising cost of labor. Therefore, many of the factories are moving to Southeastern Asia. In addition, issues include the Chinese government pulling back subsidies for foreign companies in China and the general staggering global economical situation.

"It's becoming more difficult to get a work visa in China," Ko said. "Now, the government requires a bachelor's degree, Chinese language proficiency and being a minimum of 25 years old to get a work or business visa."

Taking a toll on businesses

Businesses in Korea Town, whether owned by Chinese or South Koreans, have been in a rough patch in recent years, especially after the THAAD incident.

Take Bashaku for example. The establishment is a popular restaurant in Korea Town that sells Korean food like fried chicken and military hotpot. However, after the THAAD  incident, the customer flow dropped 20 percent.

The restaurant used to be packed with customers at rush hours and holidays, but around 7 pm last Sunday, which used to be the peak hour, the restaurant only had two or three tables of customers. 

"The business has been affected, that's for sure," said the owner, Liang Jinjing.

"Even some of my friends choose not to come to my restaurant after the THAAD incident. They said that they can't just invite many friends and come to a restaurant that sells Korean food publicly like they used to because it is embarrassing, and people would say that they are not patriotic," Liang said. 

"In most circumstances, they just come here alone, eat quietly and do not tell anyone," he said. 

"I don't know if business will recover in the future. All we can do is provide good food and service, and hope that more people could express their patriotic passion in a rational way," Liang said. 

Zhou Jiao, the manager at a restaurant that sells Korean cold noodles in Korea Town, said that after the THAAD incident, the number of customers in her restaurant dropped by two thirds.

 "All the businesses are suffering here. I believe it's just a rough patch that will not last long. The relationship between China and South Korea will be better in the near future and our business will pick up," Zhou said. 

The South Korean beauty methods and hair styles also used to be very popular in China as a part of the Korean culture wave, but according to the observations of the Metropolitan reporter, several beauty and hair salons in Korea Town are almost empty.

The same thing happened in the Korea town in Japan. Businesses in that area began to go downhill because of the deteriorating bilateral relationships between the two countries, according to a Global Times report on August 2014. The report said that the area called Shin-Okubo started going downhill when many signature restaurants and shops closed because of a major decrease in customers. According to the report, the area started to gain popularity in 2003 because of the airing of South Korean TV series, and started to go downhill in 2012 because of the territory disputes between the two countries. 

The South Korean business owners in China are facing a similar fate. According to a Reuters report last month, out of 99 Lotte hypermarkets in China, 75 had been closed by Chinese authorities as of April 2, a Lotte Mart spokesman said, but Lotte Group said that they will continue to invest its China businesses.

Although facing pressures, Ko still decided to stay and work in China for at least another three years. 

"I like China. I have lived here for so many years," Ko said. 

"I love the culture and history. There is so much to explore. Also, China's economy is rapidly developing. I believe that my knowledge of China could make me more valuable in any part of the world in the future," she said.

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1045004.shtml

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