China’s youth unemployment hits 11-month high as graduates flood the job market

China’s youth unemployment rate rose to an 11-month high in July as a record number of graduates entered an already precarious job market.

According to data released Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics, the urban unemployment rate for the 16-24 age group, excluding students, rose to 17.8% in July from 14.5% in June. This marked the highest level since August of last year.

These figures were released as a record 12.2 million university students are graduating this summer, with many joining a large pool of candidates struggling to find jobs that match their education and skill levels.

In recent months, Beijing has launched a series of initiatives to help graduates and other young people find jobs.

For example, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security is running a campaign from July to December to support unemployed youth and university graduates with services such as career counseling, job referrals, and training opportunities.

However, in a challenging economic environment where domestic demand has yet to compensate for shortfalls in traditional growth sectors like real estate, the unemployment rate for this age group remains high due to a mismatch between jobs and expectations.

“The market is quite challenging,” He Yue, a computer science graduate living in Beijing, told the South China Morning Post. After graduating from a university in Chongqing, she has been searching for a suitable job for more than two months.

Unlike many of her friends who plan to apply for master’s programs, He said she will continue her job search, likely focusing on positions in Hangzhou, a rising tech hub on China’s east coast.

This year, approximately 3.9 million people applied for the postgraduate entrance exam, as many young Chinese seek a master’s degree to gain a competitive edge amidst fierce competition for entry-level positions.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for the 25-29 age group, excluding students, increased to 6.9% in July from 6.7% in June.

China’s overall urban unemployment rate rose to 5.2% in July after holding steady at 5% for the previous two months.