Foreign Languages Fade in Class — Except Chinese 16 years ago
Not a total waste. At least you will get better service at the local Chinese restaurant....
But seriously, from the tech angle, China is becoming a dominant force in the global technology supply chain, whether it be services or products. Trying to depend on English only as the sole form of communication is not efficient in long term. It will indeed become much more useful in commerce. At the very least some immersion in the language will allow you to understand a little bit about the culture and country, which is actually much more important....