Mark Kleinman reports in Sunday Telegraph about Financial Times’s publisher, Pearson’s expansion in China. According to the report, Pearson’s plan includes the purchase of LEC, a group of private schools in Shanghai, and the launch of a Chinese-language magazine Rui targeting Chinese business elite.

The deal, likely to be announced this week, underlines Pearson’s aim to expand its Chinese operations as the country’s economic growth presents opportunities for foreign companies. Demand for English language tuition is at an all-time high in mainland China as a result of the country’s continuing integration into the global economy.

China currently accounts for less than 1 per cent of Pearson’s revenues. The group, led by Marjorie Scardino, its chief executive, is keen to tap into the rapid growth in Chinese education spending. Government expenditure is rising at an annual rate of about 15 per cent, while private education spending is growing even more rapidly, at about 25 per cent.

Read the full report.