Unemployment in Guangzhou has dropped to its lowest level for five years, down to 2.42 percent by the end of last year.

The urban jobless rate in the Guangdong provincial capital has fallen by 0.28 percentage points from the 2.7 percent recorded by the end of 2003, says Gao Dianying, director of the Guangzhou Municipal Statistics Bureau.

By the end of last year, there were more than 67,700 unemployed urban residents, Gao said.

At a press conference yesterday, Gao said the figure was more than 72,800 at the end of 2003.

He put the continuous decline down to Guangzhou's sustainable economic growth.

At the same time, many infrastructural and industrial projects have started up, creating numerous job opportunities for local residents.

As well as the new Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport that opened for air traffic in August, metro lines, ports and expressways have sprung up.

Gao believes unemployment will continue to drop this year.

The number of Guangzhou's employed residents reached more than 3.08 million by the end of last year, up 11.2 percent from data recorded for 2003.

Personal incomes in this prosperous southern metropolis witnessed a growth of 9.1 percent last year, reaching 30,807 yuan (US$3,700) per capita.

Farmers in Guangzhou also enjoyed a growth of 8.1 percent in their average personal income last year.

Their per capita income came to 6,625 yuan (US$805), a record high since 1997.

By the end of last month, Guangzhou residents had 475.53 billion yuan (US$57.78 billion) in the bank, up 12.1 percent from a year ago.

While enjoying growth in their personal incomes, Guangzhou residents also spent more last year.

The city's retail sales volume of consumer goods reached 167.51 billion yuan (US$20.35 billion) last year, up 12.1 percent from 2003.

(China Daily January 26, 2005)