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Guangdong is feeling the impact of China’s economic slowdown
Lydia Dong moved to Shenzhen, China’s technology capital, because she feared she was falling behind. When she arrived in 2021 at age 27, the city of 18 million seemed to have more economic potential than anywhere else in the world, in part because China’s economy strict Covid-19 controls it guaranteed, for some time, a degree of normality that was still illusory in the USA and Europe. Dong worked as a journalist in neighboring Hong Kong, which at the time was suffering from exodus of residents and businesses, and she wanted to harness Shenzhen’s potential. Taking on a business development role at an autonomous vehicle startup, she initially reveled in the energy of the metropolis, which is home to many of China’s most ambitious people.
Now, at age 30, she’s about to start her third job in two years, and her initial optimism has evaporated. “If you go to cafes in Shenzhen, people talk about getting money all the time,” says Dong between sips of an iced latte in Nanshan, a downtown neighborhood of skyscrapers and glitzy shopping malls. White collar salaries are stagnant and homes inaccessible to many, despite recent price drops. “Even on weekends they talk about property, about monthly payments,” she says. The financial pressure is even affecting your love life. The men she meets are carefully evaluating the salary and family background of potential partners, and some are even deciding that relationships are a luxury they can no longer afford. Dong’s last partner dumped her to focus on pursuing a promotion. “This isn’t love anymore,” she says. “It’s a math game.”