India in top 7 Asian destinations for expat working women: Survey

MUMBAI: India has featured among the top seven Asian countries preferred by expat women to work as the nation grows in trade and investments, says a survey.
Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, China and Malaysia are the other countries most preferred by expat working women ahead of India, according to an HSBC survey.

"Women expats bring new energy to a growing international workforce. There are a myriad of benefits as well as challenges in a life away from home, which includes adapting to a new culture and lifestyle, managing complex finances and staying connected to family and friends back home," said Mark Surgenor, acting head of premier and wealth, Asia Pacific, HSBC.

The survey was done among 27,587 expats from 159 countries and territories, including India, through an online questionnaire in March-April 2017.

However, when it comes to better career progression, China topped the list with 73 per cent women expats choosing the country, followed by Hong Kong at 64 per cent, India at 62 per cent, Singapore at 60 per cent and Indonesia at 52 per cent, the survey revealed.

Hong Kong was found to be the best country in Asia to acquire new skills with 62 per cent women expats opting for it, closely followed by Singapore at 61 per cent, China at 47 per cent, Taiwan at 44 per cent and Vietnam at 43 per cent.

The survey found Singapore to be the best place to improve earning prospects with 71 per cent women expats choosing the country, followed by Hong Kong at 55 per cent, China at 45 per cent, South Korea at 44 per cent and Vietnam at 42 per cent.

Top five countries for women expats to experience good work or life balance in Asia are Thailand (62 per cent), Vietnam (58 per cent), Singapore and Taiwan (49 per cent each), Indonesia (44 per cent) and Malaysia (42 per cent).

In terms of job security, the survey said, Japan and Taiwan were rated as the best places for women expats (50 per cent), closely followed by Singapore (49 per cent), Hong Kong (47 per cent), India (45 per cent) and China (41 per cent).

The top five countries in terms of work culture for women expats were Singapore (51 per cent), Hong Kong (44 per cent), Vietnam (43 per cent), Indonesia (39 per cent) and China (36 per cent).

For women expats looking to find personal fulfilment at work, the best places in Asia were Singapore (56 per cent), China (48 per cent), India (48 per cent), Hong Kong (47 per cent) and Indonesia (41 per cent).