China’s surveyed urban jobless rate stands at 5.1% in H1, an improvement from last year

The surveyed average urban unemployment rate in China came in at 5.1 percent in the first half of 2024, down 0.2 percentage points from the same period last year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Monday.

The country's employment situation has maintained stability in the first half of 2024, a spokesperson with the NBS noted on Monday.

"Economic growth, especially continuous recovery in the labor-intensive services sector provides solid support for steadily expanding employment. Policies to prioritize employment continue to produce results, while the boom of emerging industries and new business models give a boost to new types of jobs," the spokesperson said.

Since the second quarter, the country's employment rate has stabilized at 5 percent, with wholesale and retail consumption, catering and hospitality, and transport and other service industries seeing gains in created jobs, the NBS data showed.

The artificial intelligence boom has led to significant increases in both job opportunities and compensation, as demand for tech talent remains high in China.

In the first half of the year, China's national per capita disposable income of households reached 20,733 yuan ($2,855), marking a nominal growth of 5.4 percent year-on-year. Real growth was 5.3 percent after deducting price factors, the data showed.

Employment has been a priority for the policymakers. This year, China aims to create over 12 million jobs in urban areas and keep the surveyed urban unemployment rate at about 5.5 percent.

The government has rolled out multiple measures to ensure a robust job market this year and provide more assistance to key groups, which includes college graduates and migrant workers.

In May, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security unveiled a plan to offer community-level jobs for 34,400 college graduates this year, including jobs in education, agriculture, medical care, and other sectors.

China has invested 11.5 billion yuan so far this year to generate 250,000 jobs for rural residents, said the National Development and Reform Commission earlier.