BEIJING – January 11, 2019 – Zhaopin Limited (“Zhaopin” or the “Company”), a leading career platform in China focused on matching talents with job opportunities and skills through their career lifecycle, released its 2018 fourth-quarter report on China labor market supply and demand for white-collar workers.

Competition among white-collar workers for jobs remained stable in the fourth quarter of 2018, while their average monthly salary continued to rise to RMB8,096, up 3.1% from the previous quarter.

China white-collar labor market highlights for the fourth-quarter of 2018:

• The average monthly salary for white-collar workers rose to RMB8,096 in the fourth quarter of 2018, up 3.1% from the third quarter and 3.9% from the fourth quarter of 2017.
• Competition for jobs among white-collar workers remained stable in the fourth quarter of 2018, with an average of 32.0 applications per job vacancy.
• Senior management continued to receive the highest monthly salaries of RMB20,735, up slightly from the third quarter.
• The internet/e-commerce sector topped the list with the most job vacancies and the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018.
• Large companies with 1,000 to 9,999 employees were the most competitive for job seekers, while the competition for positions in mid- and small-sized companies continued to intensify from the previous quarter.

Average salary continued to rise

Based on online job postings in 37 key cities in China compiled by Zhaopin, the average monthly salary for white-collar workers continued to increase to RMB8,096 in the fourth quarter of 2018, up 3.1% from the third quarter of 2018 and 3.9% from the fourth quarter of 2017.

Average monthly salary for white-collar workers
Quarter	Average salary (RMB)	Change over previous quarter
Q4 2017	7,789	2.5%
Q1 2018	7,629	– 2.1%
Q2 2018	7,832	2.7%
Q3 2018	7,850	0.2%
Q4 2018	8,096	3.1%

Among job postings in the fourth quarter of 2018, 32.2% offered monthly salaries of more than RMB8,000, and 31.3% offered monthly salaries between RMB4,000 and 6,000. About 22.6% of positions offered monthly salaries between 6,000 and 8,000.

Breakdown of positions by monthly salaries in the fourth quarter of 2018
Salary (RMB)	Percentage of positions
Over 8,000	32.2%
6,000 to 8,000	22.6%
4,000 to 6,000	31.3%
2,000 to 4,000	13.2%
Below 2,000	0.7%

Beijing continued to top the list of cities with the highest pay in the fourth quarter of 2018, with an average monthly salary of RMB10,871. The top ten cities with the highest pay remained the same in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Average monthly salary for cities in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	City	Average monthly salary (RMB)	Ranking	City	Average monthly salary (RMB)
1	Beijing	10,871	20	Jinan	7,372
2	Shanghai	10,164	21	Nanchang	7,344
3	Shenzhen	9,776	22	Fuzhou	7,300
4	Hangzhou	9,029	23	Hefei	7,285
5	Guangzhou	8,440	24	Haikou	7,275
6	Nanjing	8,048	25	Wuxi	7,223
7	Ningbo	7,984	26	Zhengzhou	7,129
8	Xiamen	7,837	27	Qingdao	7,083
9	Dongguan	7,835	28	Lanzhou	7,061
10	Suzhou	7,739	29	Tianjin	7,038
11	Wuhan	7,710	30	Xi’an	6,898
12	Chengdu	7,692	31	Dalian	6,675
13	Foshan	7,667	32	Shijiazhuang	6,644
14	Chongqing	7,633	33	Taiyuan	6,559
15	Guiyang	7,545	34	Yantai	6,557
16	Changsha	7,502	35	Changchun	6,355
17	Urumqi	7,491	36	Harbin	6,310
18	Nanning	7,426	37	Shenyang	6,215
19	Kunming	7,410

Funds/securities/futures/investment remained the best-paying sector in the fourth quarter of 2018 with an average monthly salary of RMB11,017, followed by RMB10,371 for trust/warrant/auction/pawn, and RMB9,750 for professional service/consulting (finance and accounting, legal and HR, etc.).

Top 10 highest paid sectors in the fourth quarter of 2018
Sector	Average monthly salary (RMB)
Funds/securities/futures/investment	11,017
Trust/warrant/auction/pawn	10,371
Professional service/consulting (finance and accounting, legal and HR, etc.)	9,750
Banking	9,519
Intermediary service	9,412
Cross-industry operation	9,369
Insurance	9,232
Energy/mineral/mining/smelting	9,084
Internet/E-commerce	8,952
Online games	8,922

The top three occupations with the highest monthly salaries in the fourth quarter of 2018 continued to be senior management (RMB20,735), IT management/project coordination (RMB15,675) and securities/futures/investment management/service (RMB12,411).

Top 10 highest paid occupations in the fourth quarter of 2018
Occupation	Average monthly salary (RMB)
Senior management	20,735
IT management/project coordination	15,675
Securities/futures/investment management/service	12,411
Sales management	11,680
Software/internet development/system integration	11,224
Real estate development/broker/agency	11,165
Trust/warrant/auction/pawn	10,976
Hardware development	10,726
Banking	10,298
Civil servant/public institution/research institute	10,206

Wholly foreign-owned enterprises offered the highest average monthly salary of RMB9,019 in the fourth quarter, followed by RMB8,733 for public companies and RMB8,649 for state-owned enterprises.

Average monthly salaries from different types of companies in the fourth quarter of 2018
Type of Company	Average monthly salary (RMB)
Wholly foreign-owned enterprises	9,019
Public companies	8,733
Joint ventures	8,649
State-owned enterprises	8,584
Private companies	7,954
Public institutions	7,730

Larger companies continued to offer higher salaries than companies of smaller size in the fourth quarter of 2018, while mid-sized companies offered higher salaries than the previous quarter.

Average monthly salaries for companies of different sizes in the fourth quarter of 2018
Size of company by employee numbers	Average monthly salary (RMB)
Below 20	7,593
20-99	7,634
100-499	8,030
500-999	8,546
1,000-9,999	8,927
Above 10,000	9,116

Job market competition remained stable

Zhaopin publishes the quarterly competitive index for the labor market in China based on data collected from its online platform. The competitive index is calculated based on the number of resume applications divided by the number of job vacancies. For the fourth quarter of 2018, the competitive index was 32.0, which means there were an average of 32.0 applications per job vacancy. The index remained stable at 31.9, the same as in the third quarter of 2018, but the numbers of job openings and job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018 both surged compared to the previous quarter.

Competitive index
Quarter	Competitive index
Q4 2017	31.0
Q1 2018	42.8
Q2 2018	38.0
Q3 2018	31.9
Q4 2018	32.0

(Competitive index = number of applications/number of job vacancies)

Beijing continued to be the most competitive city for white-collar workers, with a competitive index of 89.4 in the fourth quarter of 2018, more competitive than in the previous quarter and the fourth quarter last year. The competition in Shenzhen greatly intensified in the fourth quarter of 2018. Among 37 cities measured for the competitive index, most witnessed drops in competitive index this winter compared to the previous quarter.

Competitive index for cities in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	City	Index	Ranking	City	Index
1	Beijing	89.4	20	Shijiazhuang	20.9
2	Shenzhen	43.7	21	Zhengzhou	20.8
3	Shenyang	40.9	22	Qingdao	20.3
4	Shanghai	40.9	23	Wuhan	20.1
5	Tianjin	35.5	24	Jinan	17.8
6	Chengdu	34.9	25	Suzhou	16.8
7	Harbin	34.5	26	Urumqi	16.5
8	Dalian	30.3	27	Yantai	15.7
9	Changchun	30.3	28	Kunming	15.0
10	Xi’an	26.6	29	Hefei	14.9
11	Guiyang	24.7	30	Wuxi	13.0
12	Haikou	23.7	31	Nanchang	12.6
13	Guangzhou	23.5	32	Dongguan	10.9
14	Changsha	23.3	33	Nanning	10.1
15	Chongqing	21.9	34	Fuzhou	9.7
16	Lanzhou	21.8	35	Foshan	9.6
17	Hangzhou	21.7	36	Xiamen	9.6
18	Taiyuan	21.3	37	Ningbo	7.3
19	Nanjing	21.2
Competitive index = number of applications/number of job vacancies

In terms of employer size, companies with 1,000 to 9,999 employees were the most competitive for job seekers, with an index of 41.3, followed by 36.4 for companies with over 10,000 employees. The competition for positions in mid- and small-sized companies intensified much than in the previous quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017.

Competitive index for different size companies  in the fourth quarter of 2018
Size of Company by employee numbers	Index
Below 20	25.5
20-99	27.2
100-499	33.4
500-999	36
1,000-9,999	41.3
Over 10,000	36.4

Supply and demand by sector

In the fourth quarter of 2018, the internet/e-commerce sector continued to top the list with the highest demand, followed by education/training/college, and real estate/construction/building materials/engineering sectors. Overall, job demand for the top ten sectors increased compared to the previous quarter.

Top ten sectors with the highest job demand in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Sector
1	Internet/e-commerce
2	Education/training/college
3	Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering
4	Computer software
5	Professional service/consulting (finance and accounting, legal and HR, etc.)
6	Funds/securities/futures/investment
7	Medicine/biological engineering
8	IT services (system/data/maintenance)
9	FMCG (food, drinks, alcohol and tobacco, and chemicals for daily use)
10	Trade/export and import

The sectors with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018 continued to be internet/e-commerce, real estate/construction/building materials/engineering, and computer software. Overall, job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018 outnumbered the previous quarter.

Top ten sectors with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Sector
1	Internet/e-commerce
2	Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering
3	Computer software
4	Education/training/college
5	IT services (system/data/maintenance)
6	Funds/securities/futures/investment
7	Professional service/consulting (finance and accounting, legal and HR, etc.)
8	FMCG (food, drinks, alcohol and tobacco, and chemicals for daily use)
9	Media/publishing/movie and TV/culture communications
10	Medicine/biological engineering

Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering remained the most competitive sector for job seekers in the fourth quarter of 2018, with 45.8 applications per vacancy. Among the top ten, the competition in real estate/construction/building materials/engineering, Internet/e-commerce, and online gaming sectors eased compared to the previous quarter. The competition intensified for telecom/communication technology development and application and aerospace research and manufacturing, making them two of the top ten most competitive sectors in the fourth quarter.

Top ten most competitive sectors in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Sector	Index	Ranking in previous quarter
1	Real estate/construction/building materials/engineering	45.8	1
2	Cross-industry operation	45.0	4
3	Computer software	43.7	5
4	Internet/e-commerce	43.5	2
5	Funds/securities/futures/investment	42.2	6
6	IT services (system/data/maintenance)	41.7	8
7	Online gaming	40.7	3
8	Energy/mineral/mining/smelting	39.8	7
9	Telecom/communication technology development and application	38.8	11
10	Aerospace research and manufacturing	38.2	13

Insurance continued to be the least competitive sector in the fourth quarter of 2018, with 14.2 applications per vacancy, followed by 17.3 for intermediary services, and 18.7 for printing/packaging/papermaking. The banking sector became less competitive with the number of applications declining 49.1% in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Least competitive sectors in the fourth quarter of 2018
Sector	Index
Insurance	14.2
Intermediary service	17.3
Printing/packaging/papermaking	18.7
Inspection/testing/authentication	18.8
Office supplies and equipment	20.1
Banking	21.1
Home furnishing/interior design/decoration	21.2
Outsourcing service	21.4
Processing and manufacturing (raw material processing/ mold)	21.6
Entertainment/sports/leisure	23.2

 Supply and demand by occupation

The top ten occupations with the most vacancies for white collar workers in the fourth quarter of 2018 remained the same as in the third quarter of 2018, including sales, education/training, and sales management.

Top ten occupations with the highest job demand in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Occupation
1	Sales
2	Education/training
3	Sales management
4	Administration/logistics/secretary
5	Software/internet development/system integration
6	Civil engineering/construction/decoration/municipal engineering
7	Customer service/pre-sales and after-sales support
8	Finance/auditing/tax
9	Internet product/operation management
10	Marketing

The top ten occupations with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018 were also the same as the previous quarter, leading by software/internet development/system integration, finance/auditing/tax, and administration/logistics/secretary.

Top ten occupations with the most job applications in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Occupation
1	Software/internet development/system integration
2	Finance/auditing/tax
3	Administration/logistics/secretary
4	Human resources
5	Sales
6	Civil engineering/construction/decoration/municipal engineering
7	Sales management
8	Internet product/operation management
9	Art/design
10	Marketing

The most competitive occupation in the fourth quarter of 2018 was IT quality management/testing/configuration management with 96.9 applications per vacancy, followed by 92.6 for transportation services, and 76.7 for finance/audit/tax. For the securities/futures/investment management/service, the number of job postings declined more than the number of job applications, leading to a more fierce competition.

Top 10 most competitive occupations in the fourth quarter of 2018
Ranking	Occupation	Index	Ranking in previous quarter
1	IT quality management/testing/configuration management	96.9	2
2	Transportation services	92.6	1
3	Finance/auditing/tax	76.7	6
4	Software/internet development/system integration	70.4	5
5	Senior management	69.0	3
6	Administration/logistics/secretary	53.1	4
7	Human resources	52.7	7
8	Art/design	39.3	13
9	Securities/futures/investment management/service	38.1	12
10	Purchasing/trade	34.5	11

The least competitive occupations in the fourth quarter of 2018 were healthcare/beauty/hairdressing/bodybuilding with 10.4 applications per vacancy, followed by 12.3 for Insurance and 12.9 for sales.

Least competitive occupations in the fourth quarter of 2018
Occupation	Index
Healthcare/beauty/hairdressing/bodybuilding	10.4
Insurance	12.3
Sales	12.9
Mechanic/operator	13.2
Community/residency/housekeeping	13.3
Farming/forestry/animal husbandry/fishery	13.4
Chemical	13.7
Cooking/catering/food R&D	13.9
Education/Training	14.7
Trust/warrant/auction/pawn	15.0

 

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Company Name: Zhaopin Limited
Contact Person: Ms. Serena Sun
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Phone: (86-10) 5863 5888
Country: China
Website: https://www.zhaopin.com