China created 7.17m new urban jobs in H1 2016: human resources ministry

[BEIJING] China's urban unemployment rate at the end of June was 4.05 per cent, a vice minister of the human resources ministry said on Friday, up marginally from 4.04 per cent at the end of the first quarter.

China created 7.17 million new urban jobs in the first half of 2016, vice minister Xin Changxing said at a press briefing.

Premier Li Keqiang said at China's annual parliament in March that China will create 10 million new urban jobs and hold the urban unemployment rate below 4.5 per cent in 2016.

The rate of vacancies to job seekers at the end of June was 1.05 in 100 Chinese cities, down from 1.07 in the first quarter, indicating a slight decrease in the number of openings per job seeker.

REUTERS