Chinese financial firms implement austerity measures; cut salaries, bonuses, as Beijing cracks down on corruption

From cutting salaries and bonuses and asking staff not to wear expensive clothes and watches at work, to reining in travel and entertainment expenses, Chinese financial firms have jumped on an austerity drive as Beijing pushes to bridge the wealth gap. The steps come as authorities vow to clamp down on corruption in the country’s $57 trillion financial sector and as growth in the world’s second-largest economy weakens, with youth unemployment hitting a record high. Financial professionals are among the highest-paid workers in communist China and their wealth and flashy lifestyles have often come under criticism from the public on…