Hiring activity in the nation might increase next quarter, but the pace could lose steam as fewer firms plan to raise headcounts amid a global economic slowdown, a survey by ManpowerGroup Inc found.
The US human resource firm’s employment outlook for Taiwan fell to its lowest level at 18 percent for next quarter, down 2 percentage points from three months earlier and down 7 percentage points from a year earlier, the quarterly survey found.
Only 25 percent of polled employers expected to increase their payrolls between next month and June, while 5 percent expected a drop and 68 percent planned to stay put, it found.
Disappointing smartphone sales and an economic slowdown in China limited hiring plans in companies in the supply chains of global technology brands, the survey said.
Taiwan is home to the world’s largest contract makers of chips, camera lenses, casings, battery packs and touch panels used in smartphones, TVs and laptops.
Firms in the manufacturing sector remained conservative, with an employment outlook of 18 percent, a retreat of 3 percentage points from three months earlier and 11 percentage points from the same period last year, the survey found.
The second quarter is a slow season for consumer electronic devices and local manufacturers favor contract workers to maintain operations, it said, adding that oil and raw material price corrections have also weakened business confidence.
The service industry reported the strongest hiring intention at 28 percent, an advance of 5 percentage points from last quarter and 1 percentage point from a year earlier.
Firms are looking to fill positions in e-commerce, gaming and cloud businesses, it said, adding that artificial intelligence, software, and research and development engineers are also in great demand.
Hiring intentions in the finance, insurance and real-estate sectors also lost steam, with an employment outlook of 22 percent, a decrease of 1 percentage point from three months earlier and 10 percentage points from the same period last year, the survey said.
Financial institutions are recruiting information and technology personnel to help tap into Internet and mobile banking businesses as digital evolution reshapes the banking industry, it said.
Authorities have eased investment rules, but firms prefer a stable approach in times of economic uncertainty, ManpowerGroup said.
Firms in the wholesale and retail sectors reported the weakest hiring plans, with an outlook of 13 percent, a decline of 5 percentage points from the previous quarter and 11 percentage points from the same period last year.
Poor exports would inevitably have a negative effect on domestic demand, the survey said.
Still, Taiwan ranked third after Japan and Hong Kong in the region, where hiring activity is expected to pick up in 40 of the 44 markets, it said.
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