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Did you see your paycheck getting significantly bigger in the past year? If the answer is yes, first congratulations. Either your employer appreciates your work or it could be that you simply work on the Chinese mainland. According to a report released by the recruitment firm Hays, average salary increases here on the mainland were higher than in other countries and regions in Asia throughout 2013. And that includes Singapore, Hong Kong Special Administrate Region and Japan.

Now for more on this report, we are joined in the studio by my colleague Wu Haojun.

Q1: So, Haojun, how much bigger did the average Chinese paycheck get in the past year?

Wu: Get your calculator ready, it’s time to see where we stand and if we feel we need to go talk to someone in charge. The report shows 66% of mainland employers increased salaries by more than 6 percent in 2013. In comparison, it’s 19% in Singapore, 17% in the Hong Kong SAR, and a mere¹ 6% in Japan. And that’s not the end of the story. Hays predicts this year the Chinese mainland will remain on top, as 58 percent of participants intend to raise salaries by 6 to 10 percent. Analysts² say this is because despite a slowing economy, China’s growth remains³ impressive by international standards. But, mainland employees may have to lower their expectations. According to the report, 51 percent expect more than a 10 percent rise this year, but only 9 percent of employers intend to give them. That’s a big gap there. I guess the question for us now is whether CCTV belongs to that 9 percent.

Q2: Let’s cross our fingers. Now, we’ve been talking about rises, but in terms of the sheer size of a paycheck, where does the Chinese mainland stand?

Wu: There’s still a lot of room for growth--that’s the best way to look at it. China is a big country and salary levels are bound to vary a lot. So here, let’s use Beijing, one of the top-paying cities in the country as a reference. Official statistics show Beijing’s average monthly salary for 2012 was 5,223 yuan, or about 830 dollars. For Singapore, it was over 2,500 dollars. In the South Korean capital Seoul, it was 2700 dollars a month. Even factoring in the cost of living, the gap is still very real. But, as we mentioned, the future seems to lie in the Chinese mainland, especially in its booming digital marketing⁴ and e-commerce sectors⁵ in great need of skillful workers, where 20 to 35 percent salary rises are expected.