China’s youth-jobless rate improves as challenges still threaten stability: NBS

China’s jobless rate for the 16-24 age group dipped to 13.2 per cent in June, excluding students, and has gradually improved for the past three months, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

After contracting to 14.2 per cent in May, the youth-unemployment rate further shrank by a full percentage point last month.

Meanwhile, the jobless rate for the 25-29 age group, also excluding students, was 6.4 per cent in June, and similarly marked a third consecutive month of decline, while the rate for the 30-59 age group remained unchanged from May at 4 per cent, NBS figures showed on Wednesday.

“The overall employment situation remained stable in the first half of the year,” said Wang Pingping, director of population and employment statistics at the NBS, as the broad urban-unemployment rate of 5 per cent in June was unchanged from the prior two months.

“However, it is important to note that both pressure on the overall employment volume and structural conflicts exist. Ensuring stable employment still faces certain challenges,” Wang warned on Monday before Wednesday’s data release.

In June last year, the jobless rate for the 16-24 age group hit a record-high 21.3 per cent, weighing heavy on Beijing’s post-pandemic recovery efforts.

Authorities in August halted monthly data publications to recalibrate how the rate was gauged. After not releasing any figures for July-November, a newly calibrated rate of 14.9 per cent was announced for December.

Revising the rate was done to “more accurately reflect the employment and unemployment status of the youth who are in need of a job after graduation”, NBS director Kang Yi said.

President Xi Jinping has also pledged to make youth employment a top policy priority, and he has stressed that employment for university graduates is critically important.

With the continued implementation of youth-employment-stabilisation initiatives such as skill-training programmes and the creation of many more internship opportunities, the outlook for youth employment is poised to gradually improve, the NBS’ Wang said.

Last month, China unveiled robust initiatives, including subsidies for companies hiring college graduates and a scheme to create at least 1 million internship positions annually for young people by the end of 2025.