China and Xi Jinping (習近平)'s government to tighten controls on cross-border movement further, targeting wealthy people's flight abroad and the outflow of rare earths and technology, with possible impact on Japan-China exchanges (3/4)

The Chinese government is placing greater emphasis on talent in high-tech fields and is reportedly moving to strengthen restrictions on leaving the country to curb the outflow of technology. According to Bloomberg, AI researchers and developers at Alibaba and DeepSeek require official approval before travelling overseas.

The Financial Times reported that the founder of AI start-up Manus had been barred from leaving China. The measure was reportedly taken during an investigation into a proposed acquisition by Meta.

Rumours have spread online that a Chinese businessperson of Chinese descent who had lived in Japan for many years and become a naturalised Japanese citizen was unable to return to Japan after entering China. Posts claiming that assets worth approximately ¥1.9 billion had been confiscated were also reported. Cases involving the confiscation of overseas assets have been raised for discussion.

There is a view that, although Japanese nationals and foreign nationals can enter the country, cases of people being held up when leaving are increasing. It has been suggested that tighter controls on entry to and exit from the country could also affect exchanges between Japan and China.