Job worries? Here’s how China stacks up against the U.S. and other countries

Unemployment among China’s youth aged between 16 and 24 has surged to nearly 20%, according to an official survey for July. Pictured here is a job fair in Beijing on Aug. 26, 2022.

A survey shows that more people in China and Brazil are worried about their jobs than in the U.S. and U.K.

The report said that 32% of respondents in China were concerned about the impact of inflation on their job security.

In the U.S. and UK, that figure was less than 15%.

According to an official survey for July, unemployment among China's young people between the ages of 16 and 24 has surged to nearly 20%, while the working age population in cities is 5.4%.

The unemployment rate in Brazil was 9.1% in the month of July.

The unemployment rate in the U.S. was lower in July than in the U.K.

Consumers were the focus of the study. Ben Simpfendorfer, a partner in Hong Kong, said that each country has unique situations and inflation that may affect survey results.

He pointed out that periods of very high inflation are not uncommon in Brazil.

In Brazil, a high number of people said they were worried about being able to pay for groceries.

Consumers in all four countries were concerned about being able to afford those goods, but Brazil was the most worried about it. The U.S. and China had 42% and 42% respectively.

In the U.S., where jobs growth and wage growth have been strong despite recession fears, worry about household ability to pay for groceries would be related to inflation.

In China, growth has been a little weaker, jobs growth for certain demographic has been weaker, and wage growth has been slow. Concerns about the ability to pay for groceries may be related to that.

China has been dragged down by Covid controls. Sentiment has been affected by a tighter regulatory environment.

Chinese incomes are growing at a slower rate than prices.

According to official data for the first half of the year, the average monthly disposable income for Chinese city dwellers was $4,167. It was higher than a year ago.

China's consumer price index rose 2.5% in August from a year ago, slightly off a two-year high, but still well above the national average. Pork prices went up a lot because of a rebound.

The U.K. respondents were the most pessimistic, with 75% expecting the economy to get worse. In the US, that figure was over 50%.

42% of Chinese and 26% of Brazilian respondents think conditions will improve in the next six months.

Less than 15% of US and UK respondents said they were motivated by recession fears to take on a side job. In Brazil and China, it was over 30%.