China to Have 11.58 Million College Graduates Next Year... Mass Unemployment Fear Due to Zero-COVID Policy

Up by 820,000 from this year, a record high
Youth unemployment rate nears 19.8%
Hiring market freezes due to economic recession

[Image source=Captured from Xinhua News Agency]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] It is projected that the number of university graduates in China will exceed 11 million next year, exacerbating the youth employment crisis in the country.

According to Bloomberg on the 16th, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of China held a joint meeting and announced that the total number of university graduates next year will reach 11.58 million. This is 820,000 more than this year's graduates, marking the highest number ever recorded.

In response, the Ministry of Education of China warned that with the surge in graduates amid reduced hiring capacity of companies due to COVID-19, youth unemployment is expected to worsen, urging universities to make every effort to support employment.

According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the youth unemployment rate for those aged 16 to 24 reached a record high of 19.8% as of July. Last month, the overall national unemployment rate was 5.5%.

Since 1999, Chinese authorities have significantly increased university enrollment to improve labor market quality and expand white-collar jobs. As a result, the annual number of university graduates in China, which was only 1.14 million until 2001, surpassed 5 million in 2008 and has nearly increased tenfold by 2020.

However, due to a shortage of jobs to accommodate all graduates, many have flocked to take national civil service exams and graduate school entrance exams. Last year, the number of applicants for the national civil service exam exceeded 2 million for the first time, and 4.57 million candidates took the graduate school exam, setting a record high. The Ministry of Education estimates that 5.2 million candidates will apply for the 2023 graduate school entrance exam.

In this situation, COVID-19 has further frozen the youth employment market. In the first quarter of this year, the number of new hires by Chinese companies decreased by 17% compared to the same period last year. Major Chinese internet companies such as ByteDance, Alibaba, and JD.com also significantly reduced their recruitment numbers in the first quarter compared to the previous year. ByteDance recruited a record 7,000 new employees in the first quarter last year but hired only 6,000 this year, a decrease of 1,000.

Chinese authorities set a goal to create 11 million jobs this year to keep the overall unemployment rate below 5.5%, but the employment market chill seems difficult to resolve.

Bloomberg stated, "The Chinese government has provided many benefits such as loan support and tax reductions to entrepreneurs to maintain jobs and encourage the market to absorb labor," but added, "However, as the Chinese economy slows, companies are significantly reducing office jobs in major cities that can accommodate new graduates."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.