In contrast to China’s remarkably stable GDP figures, data on the labour market corroborate evidence from elsewhere that the economy strengthened in recent quarters. China created over 13 million new urban jobs last year, more than in 2015 and easily exceeding the official target of 10 million. Meanwhile, figures collected by local labour bureaus show that the ratio of job openings to job seekers rose in Q4 to the highest since 2014. (See Chart below.) The employment components of both Markit’s manufacturing and service sector PMIs have picked up in recent months too. And while migrant wage growth remains slow by past standards, it nonetheless increased last quarter for the first time since Q1 2016.
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