As one of several red flags for the second-largest economy in the world, China on Tuesday halted the release of its data on youth unemployment, stating that it needed to evaluate the methodology used to calculate the carefully monitored benchmark, which has reached record highs.
The announcement of the decision came soon after the release of weaker-than-anticipated manufacturing and retail sales data, which led to a rare outcry on social media amid mounting dissatisfaction with the nation’s employment prospects.
Additionally, it represents the most recent effort by Chinese authorities to curtail access to crucial data and information—a trend that worries foreign companies.
The National Bureau of Statistics’ (NBS) Fu Linghui stated the release of data would be halted while officials “optimised” collection procedures.
China recently pushed down on due diligence firms working there, a crucial source of information on China for international companies, and restricted access for foreign users to some corporate registries and academic journals.
China abruptly changed the way it classified deaths from the disease at the height of the COVID-19 outbreak late last year, a decision that sparked condemnation both at home and abroad.
At home, where young Chinese are dealing with their most challenging job-hunting season, Tuesday’s move has also been viewed with cynicism.
According to the most recent NBS statistics on youth unemployment, which were released last month, the percentage spiked to a record high of 21.3% in June.
According to a survey conducted by the private sector and reported last week by the state-run China News Service, 47% of graduates will return home within six months of receiving their diploma in 2022, up from 43% in 2018.
