China’s Premier Reveals Average Monthly Income of 600 Million People

Li Keqiang, Premier of the State Council of China, recently mentioned in response to a reporter that 600 million people in China have an average monthly income of only 1,000 yuan (RMB) ($140.82 US). This figure is far from the data released by China’s National Bureau of Statistics, which indicated that China’s GDP per capita exceeded US$10,000 for the first time in 2019. The huge gap between the numbers shocked Chinese netizens. Critics expressed that Li Keqiang was giving “precautionary shots” to the people, warning that they were going to have a hard life ahead. Others think that he was leaving himself a way out for the future. On May 28, the Premier of the State Council of China, Li Keqiang, replied to a journalist’s question that in China, the annual per capita income is 30,000 RMB ($4224.52 US) but 600 million people have an average monthly income of only 1,000 yuan (RMB). It may be difficult to survive with only 1,000 yuan in a medium-sized city, not to mention the difficulties brought by the pandemic. He Junqiao, a mainland enterprise observer, expressed that the real situation was more serious than Li Keqiang said: “There are 1 billion peasants in China, with over 400 million of them working out of their own villages. If these peasants can get 3,000 yuan a month, each person could earn an average of 1,000 yuan in a family of three; but the reality is that they are not guaranteed this amount of money every month,” he said. He Junqiao indicated that the peasants who reside in the countryside earn even less. In 1995, the net income from growing food crops was about 300 yuan ($42.25 US) to 500 yuan ($70.42 US) per acre. However, the prices of food have gone up more than ten times after 25 years but the net income remained at about 500 yuan per acre. He continued: “The whole world is talking about the China Miracle. Let me tell you, China’s economy never created miracles. Actually, the cities were propped up using income plundered from the peasants.” However, people at the lowest levels in cities are poor as well. “The average wage of an employee of a private company is about 3,000 to 4,000 yuan. There are a few categories of people in China who receive high incomes as follows: Number one, the officials in the system whose incomes cannot be touched. Number two, public servants in the system and number three are the employees and managers of foreign and national businesses,” He Junqiao said. Li Keqiang also said that the total number of people who applied for monetary social benefits, unemployment benefits, or special relief is about 60 million per year and it is estimated that it will increase this year. As a result, “employment” is the biggest livelihood issue.