Students look for jobs at a career fair for graduates at Southeast University in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, on April 16. LIU LI/FOR CHINA DAILY

The job market in Qingdao, Shandong province witnessed stable improvement in the first quarter of this year as labor demand grew stronger amid a robust economic recovery.

According to statistics from the Qingdao Bureau of Human Resources and Social Affairs, from January to March the city created 66,800 new urban jobs, ranking first in the province and posting a year-on-year growth of 27.75 percent.

During this period, the city supported 8,150 people to start businesses, accounting for 27.17 percent of its annual plan. It also introduced 20,200 young talents, a year-on-year increase of 7.2 percent.

The employment situation gradually improved and largely remained stable thanks to a smooth shift in COVID-19 response and effective policies to stabilize the economy, said local officials.