US to axe China-based diplomats to cut size of mission by 10%: sources

Staff at the US embassy in Beijing and the consulates across China are facing the axe. -- Photo: AFP

The United States is set to cut the size of its diplomatic mission in China by up to 10 per cent, according to people familiar with the situation.

US diplomats working in mainland China and Hong Kong as well as local employees might be given notice as early as Friday in an unprecedented round of downsizing, the Post has learned.