(Yicai Global) Aug. 17 -- China’s urban unemployment rate inched higher last month amid the peak job-hunting season for college graduates.

The jobless rate stood at 5.1 percent in July, up from 5 percent a month earlier, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics yesterday.

More than nine million college students graduated in June and July to seek jobs, so the unemployment rate for those aged between 16 and 24 was 16.2 percent, versus 15.4 percent at the end of June, according to Yao Kai and Zhang Chenggang, academics at Fudan University and Capital University of Economics and Business. 

The professors noted that the recurrence of Covid-19, floods and beefed up industry regulation in China also led to a certain amount of joblessness.

Taking into account the impact of the pandemic and natural disasters, tighter industry supervision, weaker consumption and foreign trade growth, there is a lag in reflecting declining job numbers in July’s figures, Zhang said.

Because the jobless data system has not been in place for a long time, it does not accurately reflect the impact of certain policies on specific industries and groups of people, said Fu Linghui, an NBS spokesperson.

The government will prioritize employment during the current five-year plan, according to the executive meeting of China’s cabinet yesterday.

It will strengthen the guidance of fiscal and monetary policies to support employment, promote the development of labor-intensive industries with strong employment capacity, promote the integrated development of online and offline service industries, and promote flexible employment through multiple channels.

Editor: Peter Thomas