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Washington: Many foreign nationals no longer view America as the land of opportunity and a growing numbers of immigrants are moving back to their home countries - India, Pakistan, China, Singapore and Vietnam. These countries now have job and economic growth, sometimes double or triple that of the US.

The US government has not kept numbers on this trend for several decades. But economists and immigrants say the anecdotal evidence of it is real. China is experiencing the fastest economic growth of any country, expanding at eight per cent a year, according to CIA statistics.

India's economy ranks No. 2, growing 4.3 per cent last year. By comparison, the US economy grew just 2.45 per cent during the period. In fact, all countries in Southeast Asia have higher economic growth rates than the United States, the Denver Post said yesterday. Much of that activity is fueled by US companies outsourcing work there.

With its highly educated, English-speaking workforce, India has become a prime spot for affordable customer-support call centres, software development houses and, more recently, technical support centers. I know a lot of Indians who are going back to India," said Zafar Khan, a Denver lawyer and accountant who speaks six languages and has lived in five countries.

Khan said he is considering moving back to his native Pakistan to join a software venture. "Im toying with it," he said.

"I'm an international guy. I can move anywhere there is opportunity." China has become a key manufacturing centre for companies across the globe, making everything from washing machines and clocks to chemical fertilizers and sugar.

"I get calls from friends left and right saying they are packing up and going back to China," said Hai Yan Zhang, a Chinese business consultant who travels to the Asian nation five times a year.

"I go to China and see people's eyes sparkling," Zhang said. "Its full of life and vitality there, in contrast to the US, where we are reaching a plateau, perhaps going down."

Economists say the exodus could hurt the US economy because America is losing some of the world's smartest and most entrepreneurial people. And it most likely will feed a controversial trend by US companies to create jobs or move existing jobs offshore.

The companies, facing competitive pressures, want cheaper and faster software development, manufacturing or customer service."Those people will have the talent to do the work in their home country, and they have the relationships with the companies they used to deal with," said Rich Wobbekind, an economist with the University of Colorado.

"It's going to be easier for them to set up facilities in other countries." Multiple forces may pull immigrants back home, said Bahman Paul Ebrahimi, a global business professor at Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver.

Some people arrived here a few years ago to meet demand from companies that desperately needed talented computer scientists to keep up with the booming economy. Today, their work visas have expired and they are forced to go home because they cannot find an employer to sponsor them, he said. PTI


	Immigrants moving back to home countries? Washington: Many foreign nationals no longer view America as the land of opportunity and a growing numbers of immigrants are moving back to their home countries - India, Pakistan, China, Singapore and Vietnam. These countries now have job and economic growth, sometimes double or triple that of the US. The US government has not kept numbers on this trend for several decades. But economists and immigrants say the anecdotal evidence of it is real. China is experiencing the fastest economic growth of any country, expanding at eight per cent a year, according to CIA statistics. India's economy ranks No. 2, growing 4.3 per cent last year. By comparison, the US economy grew just 2.45 per cent during the period. In fact, all countries in Southeast Asia have higher economic growth rates than the United States, the Denver Post said yesterday. Much of that activity is fueled by US companies outsourcing work there. With its highly educated, English-speaking workforce, India has become a prime spot for affordable customer-support call centres, software development houses and, more recently, technical support centers. I know a lot of Indians who are going back to India," said Zafar Khan, a Denver lawyer and accountant who speaks six languages and has lived in five countries. Khan said he is considering moving back to his native Pakistan to join a software venture. "Im toying with it," he said. "I'm an international guy. I can move anywhere there is opportunity." China has become a key manufacturing centre for companies across the globe, making everything from washing machines and clocks to chemical fertilizers and sugar. "I get calls from friends left and right saying they are packing up and going back to China," said Hai Yan Zhang, a Chinese business consultant who travels to the Asian nation five times a year. "I go to China and see people's eyes sparkling," Zhang said. "Its full of life and vitality there, in contrast to the US, where we are reaching a plateau, perhaps going down." Economists say the exodus could hurt the US economy because America is losing some of the world's smartest and most entrepreneurial people. And it most likely will feed a controversial trend by US companies to create jobs or move existing jobs offshore. The companies, facing competitive pressures, want cheaper and faster software development, manufacturing or customer service."Those people will have the talent to do the work in their home country, and they have the relationships with the companies they used to deal with," said Rich Wobbekind, an economist with the University of Colorado. "It's going to be easier for them to set up facilities in other countries." Multiple forces may pull immigrants back home, said Bahman Paul Ebrahimi, a global business professor at Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. Some people arrived here a few years ago to meet demand from companies that desperately needed talented computer scientists to keep up with the booming economy. Today, their work visas have expired and they are forced to go home because they cannot find an employer to sponsor them, he said. PTI