BEIJING -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Friday called for more efforts to ensure employment for college graduates as a record number of graduates are expected to enter the job market this year.

In an instruction to a teleconference on the issue on Friday, Li asked local authorities to take the task seriously in light of downward pressure on the economy, with an aim to "ensure the graduate employment rate is not lowered."

Support policies to widen employment channels should be improved, and reforms should be deepened to clear obstacles for graduates in starting businesses, he said.

Li also stressed job creation through the development of a new economy and new business models, including the "Made in China 2025" plan and the "Internet Plus" initiative.

Ensuring employment has been a top concern for the Chinese government as the country eyes higher-quality growth while standing up to downward pressures. More than 7.6 million college graduates, a record high, will enter the job market this year.

China's registered unemployment rate in urban areas stood at 4.04 percent at the end of March, down from 4.05 percent at the end of 2015, official data showed.