In order to ensure the employment of young people in Qingdao --  the port city in China's eastern Shandong province -- the bureau of human resources and social security in Shinan district introduced a series of policies to provide continued, high-quality services, according to local officials.

"Qingdao has been offering house purchase subsidies to graduates who work in Qingdao since 2018," said Duan Wei, deputy director of the human resources development service center of Shinan district.

Confronted with the novel coronavirus epidemic, the service center has promoted online services, distributing subsidies regularly.

To date, more than 10,000 graduates have received a total amount of 336 million yuan ($47.88 million), which has effectively alleviated the impact of the virus outbreak on the employment of graduates, officials said.

They added that the district has adopted an "online plus offline" recruitment program.

Recruitment fairs have attracted around 30 companies -- including Hisense Group, the Institute of Oceanology at the Chinese Academy of Science and Qingdao Growful Group Pharmaceutical Co. -- which have offered over 600 jobs and reached preliminary agreements with more than 180 graduates.