China’s ageing population, coronavirus and youth unemployment threaten 2022 job market

Official data showed 12.07 million jobs were created in the first 11 months this year, fewer than the 12.79 million over the same period in 2019

Job market under pressure from Covid-19 outbreaks, an ageing population, and recovery in the service sector has been delayed by the pandemic

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China’s job market is yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:00pm, 27 Dec 2021Updated: 9:14am, 30 Dec 2021

China is facing a daunting task to stabilise employment next year, as the world’s second largest economy continues to be tested by the coronavirus pandemic and a fast-ageing society.

The country must also ensure enough jobs are created for young people and new graduates, while solving structural unemployment, said the Society of China Analysis and Forecast (2022), an annual report published last Friday by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).

China’s job market is yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels, the report said. Official data showed 12.07 million jobs were created in the first 11 months this year, fewer than the 12.79 million over the same period in 2019.

“Employment’s growth momentum has yet to be completely restored,” the report said.

It also noted “big shocks” in labour markets and a sharp rise in unemployment in some regions due to repeated outbreaks of Covid-19 and natural disasters, without elaborating.