FX.co ★ China Jobless Rate Rises More than Expected

China’s surveyed urban unemployment rate rose to 5.2% in July 2026 from 5.0% in June, slightly above market expectations of 5.1%. Among the locally registered labor force, the unemployment rate increased to 5.2% from 5.0% in the previous month, while the rate for the migrant labor force climbed to 5.2% from 4.9%. Within the migrant labor force, the unemployment rate for workers holding non-local agricultural household registration inched up to 4.9% from 4.8% in June. Across 31 major cities, the surveyed urban unemployment rate also rose to 5.2% from 5.0% in June. Employees at enterprises worked an average of 48.2 hours per week. Over the first seven months of the year, the surveyed urban unemployment rate averaged 5.2%, unchanged from both the average for the first six months and the same period a year earlier.