China’s youth jobless rates fell for the fourth consecutive month in December, though Beijing vowed to further focus on quality employment.
The unemployment rate of Chinese residents aged between 16 and 24, excluding students, dropped for four months in a row by 0.4 percentage points last month, said the National Bureau of Statistics today, without revealing specific numbers.
The bureau announced last month that the November youth unemployment rate stood at 16.1 percent.
Fu Linghui, spokesperson for NBS, said employment pressure on young adults eased after August, as the graduation season ended.
However, Fu acknowledged that additional efforts are required to stabilize employment due to certain economic challenges.
In the next phase, China plans to give more prominence to the promotion of high-quality employment and implement support programs in key areas and small and medium-sized enterprises, Fu said.
The overall jobless rate stood at 5.1 percent on average last year, NBS data showed.
(Staff reporter)
