BEIJING, April 17 (Xinhua) -- China continued to see a stable job market in the first quarter this year, with the unemployment rate at a relatively low level, data showed Tuesday.

From January to March, the surveyed unemployment rate in urban areas was 5.0 percent, 5.0 percent and 5.1 percent respectively, down 0.2 percentage points, 0.4 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points from the same month last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The urban surveyed unemployment rate in 31 major cities was 4.9 percent, 4.8 percent and 4.9 percent respectively, down 0.1 percentage points, 0.2 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points year on year.