A record number of 234,000 people were seeking jobs in Shanghai during the first quarter of this year, up 7.8 percent from the level last year, and 23.8 percent more than in 2002, according to the Shanghai municipal jobcenter.

But there were only 179,000 job opportunities offered in the city during the three-month period, though the figure was 6.5 percent more than a year ago.

This means that there were only 76 job opportunities available for every 100 job hunters in Shanghai, a worsening situation in the city compared with a year earlier.
 
(Xinhua News Agency April 17, 2004)