China Jobless Rate Rising

China’s cabinet said on Wednesday that risks of mass unemployment in some regions and sectors have increased and pledged more fiscal and monetary policy support to address the potential rise in the jobless rate, CNBC reported. It said in a guideline posted on its website that China must place employment as a top policy priority. The Chinese government will appropriately reallocate workers from sectors affected by capacity cuts such as steel, coal, and coal-fired power. The State Council said China faces “intensified structural conflicts” in its current job market, but it must place employment as a top policy priority and address the new challenges to keep its employment rate stable. China’s official unemployment rate–which only accounts for urban, registered residents–has held around 4% for years, despite a slowdown that has seen growth cool from the double-digits to quarter-century lows of under 7%. The State Council said provincial governments in those regions should take measures such as increasing the stipend for firms under job-shedding pressures.