FX.co ★ China Jobless Rate Hits 6-Month High

In August 2025, China's surveyed unemployment rate rose to 5.3%, surpassing both market forecasts and the previous month's rate of 5.2%. This figure represents the highest unemployment rate since February. For the locally registered labor force, the unemployment rate stood at 5.4%, while for the migrant labor force, it was 5%. Specifically, the unemployment rate among migrant workers with agricultural household registration was 4.7%. In 31 major cities, the urban surveyed unemployment rate was 5.3%, showing an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior month, though a decrease of 0.1 percentage point compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, the national average for weekly working hours among enterprise employees held steady at 48.5 hours. From January through August, the average national urban surveyed unemployment rate remained steady at 5.2%.