Banking, Daily Use, and Haggling

Chinese Track Homepage

The Renminbi
As we all know, the Renminbi (人民币) is the currency of China. The yuan (元/圆,sign: ¥) is the basic unit of currency and is colloquially called kuai (块, "lump", originally of silver). From Wikipedia, one yuan is subdivided into 10 jiǎo (角, or máo, 毛 "feather"), and a jiǎo in turn is subdivided into 10 fēn (分). Renminbi banknotes are available in denominations from 1 jiao to 100 yuan (¥0.1–100) and coins have denominations from 1 fen to 1 yuan (¥0.01–1). Thus, some denominations exist in both coins and banknotes. Coins under ¥0.1 are used infrequently. By the way, yuan can translate into the a dollar or unit, in that the USD may be called Měiyuán (美元), or American yuan and the Euro is called Oūyuán (欧元), or ''European yuan. ''A portrait of Mae Zedong appears on all current banknotes with the current series  ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥20, ¥50 and ¥100.

Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan operate under different currencies: Hong Kong dollar (pegged to the Macanese patacas), Macanese pataca (from Portuguese description of Mexican dollar, or in traditional Mandarin, 澳門圓), and Xīntáibì (新台币) respectively.

Before 2005, the value of the Renminbi was pegged to the USD; since then, the RMB is a managed float although there is suspicion of currency manipulation. Many markets expect the RMB is undervaluated. As of Nov-2013, the RMB is valued as a currency swap and is the 8th most traded currency in the world. Futures are speculated on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

You may exchange USD in China, but receipts are required to re-exchange back to USD. As of 2010, the maximum, individual withdrawl from an account is 50,000 USD with proper ID. Per day, the maximum withdrawel and purchase is 10,000 USD and 500 USD respectively.

Cost of Goods and Services and Haggling


Haggling... surprisingly older than the currency itself. China is cutthroat when it comes to purchasing decisions.

As a necessity, you will learn the number gestures, shown on the right. These are useful expressing price over loud noises or hidden in a sleeve for privacy.

Try your skills at the Beijing Silk Market (秀水街). With ritualistic screaming and high-paced transactions, you will survive or die... or you'll be able to handle most negotiating tactics beyond. Like any multistory building that stands in solidarity regardless of township, you'll do well in any city that offers a transaction market, from Montreal to Cape Town. You might even learn a word or two from a pint-sized Asian woman who assaults in Russian, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Korean, Urdu, Mandarin, and even English.

The basics begin with the currency rule: convert the USD price into RMB, subtract half, and use that as a ceiling. As an example, say one USD trades at six RMB. An inital offering of $150 for a wanted artifact is roughly 900 Yuan. Subtracting half is 450 Yuan = $74. This should your absolute, anti-intuitive-western-influenced high limit. It sounds sleazy to equate the money so low, but a local person could easily hack the price down to a quarter of your best try. With guilt, empathy, or sacrifice, you will most likely walk away having payed more. That is OK as long as you got your perfect item. Else, walk away; the shop/kiosk owner may pursue on foot or worse; don't let an owner's yelling from a distance turn you away from an excellent lunch opportunity nearby.

Example 1 of Haggling

As many routine services such as rent, memeberships, etc. require a three month or more front-payment, you may find better pricing if you go long-term. As an example, a year-long gym membership is cheaper than 4 times renewing a 3 month membership.

Banks in China
Language barrier, language barrier

It is easy as a foreigner to open a banking account in China; language may not be so easy. However, many international banks with accounts in China often require a minimum, daily account amount (maintainance deposit) and offer few banking locations or ATMs. From Expat Arrivals, "ATMs and branches for local banks like Bank of China, ICBC, Construction Bank of China and the Agricultural Bank of China seem to be ubiquitous; most have easily-accessible ATMs and require very little to establish an account."

However, a local bank account is often easy to open, baring language barriers. Opening a Chinese bank account often requires three things: ​ ​ Please note, not all locations and accounts provide non-Chinese support. Read carefully at home the documents before you sign or have a trusted translator when reviewing financial forms.
 * 1) Passport, visa
 * 2) Rarely but possible, a printed, local address on a bill, residency, etc
 * 3) Small deposit

The four major banks in China are:
 * 1) Bank of China (BOC)
 * 2) China Construction Bank (CCB)
 * 3) Agricultural Bank of China
 * 4) Industrial and Commerical Bank of China (ICBC)
 * These all provide English service

Although international credit cards are accepted throughout major cities and debit ATMs are abundandt (beware of foreign exchange fees and charges), local stores almost always accept only cash. As many stores come on electronic payment, you will likely find them accepting Union Pay. Union Pay is a state-run bank card network; it is highly advantageous if your bank offers a Union Pay debit card.

Tax may be determined by the number of days you live in China; keep up-to-date on Chinese and American/foreign tax laws.

More information: Shanghai Expat, Expat Briefing

Transferring Money to China
Costs, carriers

Better to use debit, credit, or Chinese card?