(Yicai) July 23 — China’s urban unemployment rate fell to 5 percent last month, down from 5.7 percent year-on-year thanks to policy support and an economic recovery, and below the previously forecast high of 5.5 percent.
About seven million new jobs were created in urban areas from January to June, up 200,000 from the same period last year, meeting 58 percent of the annual target, Yun Dong-lai, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, said at a press conference today.
Yoon said employment for key groups, including new graduates, was broadly stable, but did not provide specific data by age group.
But the statistics bureau said last week that the urban unemployment rate for 16-24 year-olds (excluding students) was 13.2% in June, compared with 6.4% for 25-29 year-olds and 4% for those 30-59.
The ministry is stepping up policies such as special loans, the promotion of advanced manufacturing and the silver economy to ensure job stability and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. Additionally, it aims to improve service quality to provide businesses and workers with more efficient, convenient, accurate and high-quality employment services, Yoon added.
The Ministry of Labor and Social Security will intensify efforts to promote employment for university graduates and other young people and take various measures to expand job opportunities for migrant workers.
China’s labor market is expected to remain stable due to trends such as economic recovery, strengthening policies and the emergence of new high-quality productive forces, Yin said, adding that the external environment remains complex and challenging, so the country needs to make further efforts to address challenges. Domestic demand is not sufficient, some enterprises are having operational problems and some people are having difficulty finding work, he further explained.
Editor: Emi Raine
