Why are Chinese portrayed to be Rich?

hmm it would seem that in most countries the chinese are the more affluent people. it's just like the perception that jews are more well off. truth be said, not all chinese are rich but Chinese as a race is certainly richer than most. look at countries like indonesia and malaysia. before the racial riot in indonesia, the chinese who are the minority (think 15%) holds more than 70% of the national wealth. the perception also has got to do with the hardworking nature of chinese. for chinese in asia, the habit is to work work work really hard and save even harder. in my country, a lot of chinese on the dough actually die with tens of thousands of dollars in their bank account. but devilhands, the part about strangers being interested in you are a little scary. which part of the world are you from?

yeah you're rich, but the truth is that it is an accumulative perception of rich culture, history, and tradition backed-up with power and wealth like the dynasties, and here in the philippines, the perception came from histories where chinses are well known trader and even the spaniards at that time are threatened to them. and nowdays almost all well known millioriares in the Phil are chinese tycoons.

I know the feeling! My culture is the same way! I think being born here in the U.S. has deprived me of the potential to be a "money miser"! I guess you have to have gone through "tough" times for that characteristic to have been cultivated, my people are known for their saving large amounts of money and being economical! But I have was born "Americanized", and a natural spendthrift! I think the potential is in everybody, but the environment lures you to do otherwise!

well having been to China a few times now, and not the tourist areas either, I've never really seen Chinese that way. However, I know that in some places where there is a migrant Chinese community there are often a number of Chinese business people and they often do very well. When local jealousies get stirred up then Chinese are steriotyped as "the rich" regardless of how much truth there is or isn't in the steriotype. When I'm in Africa I get a taste of this as relative to the people I'm working with I would be increadibly rich beyond their wildest dreams although in my own country I'd be struggling to survive most all the time. Its all very relative. I've met people everywhere who were good and bad with money. Not all Scots are mean!