The coronavirus pandemic has forced a dramatic change in priorities for Beijing’s leaders.
Now they must grapple with falling economic growth and a rising unemployment rate that threatens social stability – the foundation of the ruling Communist Party’s legitimacy.
University graduates, migrant workers and the country’s small business sector are the most at risk. China’s leadership has responded by making controlling unemployment a higher priority for the year ahead than getting the growth rate back on track.
At the same time, local officials have been told multiple times that they must also fulfill the country’s anti-poverty targets by the end of this year, putting further pressure on loc
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May 14, 2020