FOREIGN banks are paying much higher office and residential rents in Beijing than in other Asian cities but are compensated by lower wages, according to a recent survey on business costs by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
China's rental costs, which were already the highest in 1989, have more than doubled in the past five years, compared with Asian countries such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.
Banks are paying more than US$50 per square metre for prime office space in Beijing. Jakarta, the next most-expensive market, is well under $20.
The survey said the drastic rise was ''the obvious result of China's rapid economic growth''.
Other countries surveyed have maintained relatively constant rental levels.
Beijing's high rents are offset by the much lower relative wages paid to tellers, senior secretaries and banking hall supervisors.
