Job adverts slip 0.7% on-quarter in Q1

Job adverts slip 0.7% on-quarter in Q1
    POSTED: 27 May 2013 7:51 PM
 
Job advertisements in Singapore fell 0.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the last quarter of 2012, according to international recruitment consultancy Robert Walters.

SINGAPORE: Job advertisements in Singapore fell 0.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the last quarter of 2012, and dropped 7.3 per cent from January to March.

The advertising numbers were released by Robert Walters, an international recruitment consultancy.

The Robert Walters Asia Job Index tracks advertisement volumes for professional positions across the leading job boards and national newspapers in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea.

The index showed that job advertisements in Singapore for IT supervisors and administrators fell by 12.1 per cent.

Robert Walters said this correlates to the trend of companies shifting their hubs to cheaper locations in Southeast Asia to mitigate a stronger Singapore dollar.

While retail remains the largest sector by advertising numbers, the total number of advertised roles fell slightly by 0.6 per cent in Q1 compared to the previous quarter.

Advertisements for property management roles rose by 11.9 per cent in Q1 compared to Q4 last year.

The report noted that Singapore continues to build new developments to cater for a growing population.

Advertisements for accounting and finance roles increased by 4.1 per cent on the previous quarter.

The report attributed this largely to a sustained insurance market and growth in private banking and asset management, an area that is being supported by the growing number of wealthy expatriates moving to Singapore.

The total number of job advertisements for professional positions in Asia rose 4 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 from the last quarter of 2012.

From January to March 2013, recruitment advertising volumes across Asia grew by 20.6 per cent.

All territories except Singapore showed an increase in recruitment advertising in Q1 compared to Q4 2012.

The retail sector continued to be a strong area for job advertising. Advertising numbers increased in Malaysia (by 18.3 per cent), Hong Kong (10.9 per cent) and Japan (8.5 per cent).

- CNA/al

- wong chee tat :)