Asian Economy: Overview, Growth and Development - China's 11.6m graduates face a jobs market with no jobs.

Byline: S. KAMAL HAYDER KAZMI

With a master's degree in applied linguistics from one of Australia's top universities, Ingrid Xie did not expect to end up working in a grocery store. But that was where she ended up after graduating from the University of Queensland in July last year.

Xie did her undergraduate degree in China, studying English in the shade of palm trees at Hainan Tropical Ocean University. She went abroad for her master's because she thought that would help her find a better job.

But after working at a Korean supermarket in Brisbane for several months after graduating, in February she decided to return to her home city of Kunming, in the south-west province of Yunnan, to find a job as an English teacher.

Xie soon...