China launches new time-use survey

BEIJING -- A recently launched survey may give a glimpse into the day-to-day life of modern Chinese.

The time-use survey, launched earlier this month by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), is based on a random sample of more than 60,000 people in about 20,000 households from all over the country, the NBS said in an online article.

"The indoor survey will reflect the lifestyles and life quality of the Chinese, and is a useful tool to evaluate the improvement in social welfare over recent years," the NBS said. "The survey can also provide useful data for international comparison and social research."

China conducted a similar survey in 2008, covering residents in Beijing and nine provinces. The survey showed that residents in Beijing spent about 31.6 percent of their time at work during weekdays, while 7.4 percent of the time was used for household chores.