East China's Zhejiang Province created 670,000 jobs last year, exceeding the annual projection of 520,000, said the local bureau of statistics.

 

The province also helped 350,000 laid-off workers find new jobs last year, the bureau added.

 

The move helped decrease Zhejiang's unemployment rate by 0.38 percentage points from the beginning of 2005 to 3.72 percent at the end of the year.

 

According to the statistical bureau, pensions had covered 6.47 million workers with enterprises in the province at the end of last year, while medical insurance covered 6.32 million people, an increment of 460,000 people and 630,000 people respectively from the end of the previous year.

 

(Xinhua News Agency February 5, 2006)