China’s National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday its data indicates that unemployment among young people (16-24) in urban areas has continued to rise in recent months, reaching 20.8 percent last month.
In April, this rate was 20.4%.
As for the unemployment rate of the entire active population, it reached 5.2% in May, the same level as in April, according to the same source.
The new record level of the youth unemployment rate and a series of disappointing economic indicators in China, published on Thursday, point to a faltering recovery in this country, while many economists call for the adoption of a recovery plan.
It would seem that the long-awaited recovery after the authorities lifted the health restrictions imposed at the end of 2022 to limit the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic, has started to weaken in the world’s second largest economy in recent weeks, and its effects do not did not appear in certain sectors.
According to data released Thursday, retail sales, the main indicator of household consumption, suffered a decline in May.
The markets follow this indicator closely. Last month, it rose 12.7% year-on-year, but at a slower pace than in April (18.4%).
Analysts polled by Bloomberg Financial News said they expected a more moderate slowdown (13.7%), even though customers have returned to malls and restaurants since health restrictions were lifted in December.
Weak domestic demand, despite virtually non-existent inflation, is also holding back the recovery.
Industrial production growth slowed in May to 3.5% year-on-year, down from a 5.6% increase the previous month as factories gradually returned to full capacity.
Investment in fixed assets also slowed, recording a 4% year-on-year increase in the first five months of the year (vs. 4.7% previously).
It is an indicator of spending on real estate, infrastructure, equipment and machinery, sectors on which the government was counting to stimulate economic activity.
Authorities are looking to achieve growth of “about 5%” this year, which would be the lowest in decades for the Asian giant. To support growth, the Chinese central bank on Thursday lowered a benchmark interest rate for medium-term loans.
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