Dimon alarmed that foreigners with advanced degrees can’t stay

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon told investors the U.S. is hurting the economy and growth by forcing hundreds of thousands of foreign students to leave every year after earning advanced degrees at American universities.

“It is alarming that approximately 40 percent (this is an astounding 300,000 students each year) of those who receive advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math” have no legal way of staying in the U.S., Dimon told shareholders in his annual letter Tuesday.

“We are forcing great talent overseas by not allowing these young people to build their dreams here.”

(See also: What Dimon had to say about fintech in his annual letter.)

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase (left), meets with President Donald J. Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump stands next to Jamie Dimon, chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co., left, as he greets attendees during a Strategic and Policy Forum meeting in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, Feb. 3, 2017. The gathering of the 18-member group, led by Blackstone Group LP CEO Steve Schwarzman, will give Americas first billionaire commander-in-chief a chance to reprise his Apprentice role on a grand scale. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

He made the comment in a list of government moves that already have eroded economic growth in recent years — also including wars that have cost trillions of dollars, a surge in student debt and policies that seek felony convictions for minor crimes, keeping people out of the workforce.

Yet, the remarks come just as President Donald Trump seeks to make good on a campaign promise to crack down on work visas that let companies in Silicon Valley and beyond enlist skilled foreign workers — hiring that Trump says comes at the expense of American workers.

On Friday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency made it harder for companies to use so-called H-1B work visas.

Dimon, who sits on Trump’s business forum aimed at boosting job growth, has been voicing support this year for other parts of the president’s business agenda. Dimon has said the U.S.
would have a bright economic future if the new administration carries out plans to overhaul taxes, rein in regulation and boost infrastructure investment.

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