China's jobless rate for youth of 16-24 years old hits 20.8% in May: NBS

China's surveyed unemployment rate among the 16-24 years age group hit a new high in May, but employment situation has remained stable benefitting from “targeted supportive measures” as the economy continues to recover, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Thursday.

According to the NBS, the surveyed urban unemployment rate in China stood at 5.2 percent in May -- unchanged from the previous month, maintaining a downward trend since the start of the year.

The surveyed unemployment rate for people aged 25-59 years fell to 4.1 percent in May, down 0.1 percentage points from April, which maintains a three month decline, indicating that the labor market is “generally stable and improving”.

Fu Linghui, a spokesperson for the NBS, said that the improvement of the national economy, especially the rapid recovery of the services sector, was having a positive impact on the job market.

“Employment pressure and structural problems cannot be ignored, as the employment of young people still faces pressure, with the shortage of highly skilled personnel still existing,” Fu noted, adding that more efforts were needed to promote a balance between job supply and demand on the labor market.

The surveyed unemployment rate among the 16-24 years age group stood at 20.8 percent in May, up from 20.4 percent in April, NBS said. According to Fu, a total of 33 million of this age bracket entered the labor market in China in search of jobs in May, with 26 million already landing a job, and more than 6 million still searching.

The country’s favorable demographic fundaments still remains, and “a new talent dividend” is taking shape, said Ministry of Human Resource and Social Security on Wednesday, highlighting that China is still a developing country with a large population and labor force.

The ministry said that it will promote youth employment, do everything in its capacity to expand jobs, and support college graduates and other young people to find meaningful vocations.

In 2023, China will produce 11.58 million fresh college graduates, a record high.

Chinese education authorities have launched a 100-day sprint by releasing a range of practical policies to expand employment for graduating students this year in the face of a volatile job market.

According to the Xinhua News Agency in May, the sprint, led by Ministry of Education operating from May to August this year, is designed to expand the job market, provide targeted employment guidance, and strengthen employment support for key age groups.