White-collar report shows wide income range

6 November 2007

A recent report on white-collar income showed a wide variance across cities in China, New Express Daily reported (in Chinese). The report, released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the nation's top social academic think tank, classified major cities including Macau and Hong Kong into seven levels considering salaries, price level, accommondation, transportation cost and urbanization conditions in different cities. Hong Kong and Macau were in the top category, with average incomes of about US$2,600 and US$1,200 per month, respectively. Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wenzhou and Beijing were in the second tier, with average incomes between US$700 and US$750. Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet, is at the bottom of the list, with white-collar workers earning around US$127 a month.