A Chinese official denied an acceleration in the outflow of people from the country's three northeastern provinces, which have served as a major industrial base in past decades.
The provinces of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang saw a net outflow of about 240,000 people from 2010 to 2015, and there was no acceleration compared with the previous 10 years, said Zhao Chenxin, spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission, on Tuesday.
Outflow from the three provinces was less than the amount from some central and western regions to developed eastern areas, he said.
Concerns over population outflow have arisen as GDP growth in the traditional heavy industrial base sharply decelerated due to China's shift to high-end manufacturing and services and the slowdown of the broader economy.
Although there has been no accelerated outflow of people as a whole, Zhao said many college graduates, skilled workers and executives are moving out of the region to seek jobs or start businesses.
The government will take actions to attract these groups to the region, according to the spokesperson.
