SHANGHAI employees saw their salaries increase 6.7 percent on average in the first half of the year, but the raise was the lowest of all China's first-tier cities, according to a survey.

Pay rises in Shenzhen, Beijing and Guangzhou ranged from 7.1 percent to 8.8 percent, while the average level in second-tier cities was 7 percent, according to the survey by China International Intellectech (Shanghai) Corp.

It said 64 percent of Shanghai companies said they had increased pay for all employees, second only to Guangzhou, and no decreases were reported.