HONG KONG: Once upon a time, not so long ago, Prince Charming came riding in a sleek Mercedes and beneath his name in gold lettering on his office door was emblazoned the title, Chief Executive Officer.

Times have changed since the paladins of the financial sector led the charge which ended when the global economy fall off a cliff. Fair damsels in search of the modern Prince Charming are no longer enamored of men employed in the financial sector.

Today's matchmakers see a change in the courtship preferences of men as well. Ladies who insist on being lavished in luxury products appear set at a distance by men in search of true love.

Beneath the trend are economics.

Novell Lee, a marketing specialist in search of everlasting love, envisions her Mr Right as a stalwart civil servant.

One of her friends is haunted by anxieties over still unconfirmed reports of impending layoffs at HSBC, where her boyfriend is employed, for the time being.

"I am not certain about the future if I have a partner who works in the financial field," she said. "If I am going to marry and have a child, it will be a serious problem if my husband is jobless. Those working for the government have stable jobs."

Ann Chow, in charge of the match making agency Diamond Singles Club, says the impact of the financial crisis on match making is evident.

"The changes in expectations about partners quickly emerged after the crisis," she said. "I had not expected that the desirability of men working in the financial sector would go down in such a short period of time."

Not only women have changed their minds, men are more reluctant to develop relationships amid the current uncertainty.

Eva Chan, who is in charge of the match making agency Single Meeting, said that men do not dare to meet women because of uncertainty. They do not dare to date women who wear expensive clothes because they cannot provide a luxurious lifestyle to women who do.

(HK Edition 02/13/2009 page1)