China’s weaker economy leaves a generation facing dimmer prospects

what happened

Newsmetry API, citing a report by The Wall Street Journal, says China’s weakening economy and the spread of artificial intelligence are undermining young people’s career prospects. Ma Yongjian, 27, left a master’s program in computer science after concluding that layoffs across Chinese technology companies would make it difficult to find a good job. He moved from Beijing to Dali without telling his parents.

Sources familiar with the matter say Alibaba and ByteDance have been quietly reducing headcount, while AI is also affecting hiring in filmmaking and finance. Some employers reportedly estimated that the technology could eliminate 30% or more of their existing roles. Chinese officials have warned companies not to cut jobs as they adopt AI, reflecting concern about the effect on social stability.

The urban jobless rate for people aged 16 to 24, excluding students, was roughly 19% in August, compared with about 9% in the U.S. For those aged 25 to 29, it was 7.5%, versus 5.3% in the U.S.; China’s overall unemployment rate was around 5%. Wage growth has stalled, while marriage and parenthood are being delayed.

Young graduates are struggling across sectors. Zhang Tian lost a job after China’s property bubble burst, while her partner, Cheng Ming, faced repeated layoffs and a company bankruptcy. Jeremy Li, 28, has applied for roughly 100 jobs since last fall and is living with his parents. Steven Barnett of the University of Hong Kong estimates urban employment is about 7% below its pre-Covid path, a shortfall of roughly 37 million jobs. Tsinghua University professor Li Daokui puts broad unemployment at about 10%.

why it matters

A weaker labor market could restrain Chinese consumption, housing demand and demographic trends. At the same time, rapid AI adoption supports Beijing’s technology agenda while increasing uncertainty around employment and social stability.

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