China's youth unemployment rate hit 20.4% in April, the highest level seen since China began tracking the statistic in 2018.
The Chinese government introduced new policies to stimulate youth employment, but the high unemployment rate and the prospect of a 'lost generation' still pose a major challenge for the Chinese economy in the coming years.
- The youth unemployment rate looks at people aged 16 to 24.
- The Chinese government created subsidies for small- and medium-sized businesses to hire college graduates, and some state-owned firms in China have been directed to create more entry-level jobs.
- The number of graduates from Chinese universities has grown rapidly in recent years.
- 11.6 million university students are expected to graduate this June — 820,000 more than last year.
- The Chinese government has cracked down on the technology and education sectors in recent years, leading to hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs.
- The mismatch of a growing supply of university-educated workers with a shrinking demand for expensive skill sets has played a major role in the rising youth unemployment rate.