Money management presents problems for young workers

With the new year around the corner, many young people in China say they are afraid of being asked about saving money when they visit family and friends, Chinanews.com reported on Monday.

Over 400 people commented under the Sina Weibo hashtag #how much money have you saved this year#, and the majority of them said they had not rounded up much savings in 2019.

One comment struck a chord with many individuals: "I planned to save 50,000 yuan ($7,148) this year, but now I still need 80,000 yuan to achieve my goal," an internet user named Zengdao130jin wrote.

A number of people gave a thumbs-up to the comment, saying they too found themselves in debt, although they initially wished to save money.

In fact, statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics in May showed the average monthly salary of urban workers ranged from 4,131 yuan to 6,872 yuan (before tax) in 2018. Notably, employees from the younger generations had higher earnings. The monthly income of post-90s workers ranged from 5,001 yuan to 10,000 yuan, according to a report issued by 58.com in the first half of 2019.

Meanwhile, a survey by financial firm HSBC revealed the nation's latest dominant work force owned a considerable amount of personal loans - An average post-90s borrower owes a total of over 120,000 yuan to financial institutions and credit card issuers.

The majority of these money borrowers attributed their loans to undue spending. A report by Suning, the country's leading retailer, pointed out the post-90s generation is bolder in spending money. They generally focus on quality and service, are curious about new things, and pursue individualized, diversified and experience-oriented consumption.

"Online shopping alone cost me over 10,000 yuan in the past two and half years, and I don't even know how much money I have spent shopping in stores. My first New Year's resolution for 2020 is I will cut unnecessary purchases and save some money," read a comment on Sina Weibo.

However, statistics also showed a notably large number of young people who save money and manage personal finances. According to a report jointly released by China New Economy Research Institute and Alipay in late July, 92 percent of post-90s individuals save money on a monthly basis, and 80 percent of the population manages their savings. In addition, the post-90s population living in first-tier cities is more aware of saving money - more than 15 percent of them have saved over 100,000 yuan, read a consumer behavior report published by online retailer Vipshop in June.