Chinese Premier Li Keqiang casts his vote during the closing session of the National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on March 11.CARLOS GARCIA RAWLINS/Reuters
China’s economy has recovered to some extent, but its foundation is not solid, state media on Tuesday quoted Premier Li Keqiang as saying.
China will strive to drive the economy back onto a normal track and bring down the jobless rate as soon as possible, Mr. Li was quoted as saying.
“Currently, the implementation of the policy package to stabilize the economy is accelerating and taking effect. The economy has recovered on the whole, but the foundation is not yet solid,” Mr. Li was quoted as saying.
“The task of stabilizing employment remains arduous.”
China’s economy showed signs of recovery in May after slumping the previous month as industrial production revived, but consumption remained weak and underlined the challenge for policy makers amid the persistent drag from strict COVID-19 curbs.
China’s nationwide survey-based jobless rate fell to 5.9 per cent in May from 6.1 per cent in April, still above the government’s 2022 target of below 5.5 per cent.
In particular, the surveyed jobless rate in 31 major cities picked up to 6.9 per cent, the highest on record. Some economists expect employment to worsen before it gets better, with a record number of graduates entering the work force in summer.
Mr. Li vowed to achieve reasonable economic growth in the second quarter, although some private-sector economists expect the economy to shrink in the April-June quarter from a year earlier, compared with the first quarter’s 4.8-per-cent growth.
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