<p>Decline in entry of foreign students hurting US software industry </p>
<p>DAVOS Microsoft chief Bill Gates has warned that tough United States visa regulations have caused a decline in foreign computer science students coming to the country, reported the Financial Times.
.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr Gates said the situation was serious enough to undermine America's position in the global software industry.
.
Mr Gates said the slump in student numbers was a "disaster".
.
He said the status of the United States as "the IQ magnet of the world" was threatened because of the tougher immigration rules that were introduced after the Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.
.
"There has been a 35 per cent drop in Asians coming to our computer science departments," Mr Gates was quoted as saying by the newspaper. "It really is a very bad thing for a very key area," he added.
.
Mr Gates's company is one of the world's biggest employers of international computer talent.
.
He also highlighted the gap in the number of American students taking engineering courses in the US and in developing markets, such as India and China.
.
He said that in India and China, about 40 per cent of students take engineering degrees, as opposed to only four per cent in the United States.
.
US universities have also been concerned by the drop in foreign students, whose applications have been stalled by visa problems.
.
Last year, the president of the prestigious Harvard University, Mr Larry Summers warned that the US would lose "incalculable benefits" if the next generation of foreign leaders chose to be educated elsewhere.</p>