Tougher job market predicted

Competition in the mainland job market is expected to intensify, with projections that another 10 million people will be jobless by 2010, the South China Morning Post reported. Labor and Social Security Minister Tian Chengping said that excess labor and structural unemployment are serious problems and that the labor market requires more regulation. The labor supply is expected to top 830 million by 2010, with an additional 50 million residents joining the labor force in urban areas. Only 40 million jobs will have been created, leaving an extra 10 million people without work. Calculations do not include unemployment in rural areas, where about 57% of the population resides. Despite China's strong economic development in recent years, it has been mainly driven by the government's fixed-asset investment, which helps little in job creation.