LABOUR DEMAND CONTINUES TO COOL

The number of job vacancies fell for the sixth consecutive quarter from a peak in March 2022.

Nearly one-third of all job vacancies in the third quarter were in growth sectors, including information and communications, health and social services, professional services, as well as financial and insurance services.

The labour market remained tight, with the overall number of job vacancies continuing to exceed the number of unemployed people.

The ratio of job vacancies to unemployed people was at 1.58 in September, down from 1.94 in June.

EMPLOYMENT

Total employment, excluding migrant domestic workers, rose by 23,600 in the third quarter, a smaller increase than the previous quarter. It was also the eighth consecutive quarter that total employment had increased.

Resident employment grew by 2,800 in the third quarter, a reversal of the contraction in the previous quarter. The increase was mainly in growth sectors, including health and social services, financial and insurance services, as well as professional services.

Non-resident employment continued to expand, although at a slower pace compared with previous quarters. This increase was mainly from several sectors, namely construction, administrative and support services and food and beverage services.

The construction sector has seen slowing growth since the third quarter of 2022, said MOM.

Unemployment rates remained low in October. The overall unemployment rate was 1.9 per cent, while the resident unemployment rate was 2.7 per cent and the citizen rate was 2.9 per cent.

Resident long-term unemployment rate rose from the eight-year low of 0.5 per cent in June to 0.7 per cent in September.

MOM said the rise in resident long-term unemployment rate to the pre-COVID average rate “bears close monitoring”.

“While the labour market continued to expand, the pace of employment growth has slowed compared to a year ago. Economic headwinds will continue to weigh on the labour market going forward,” added the ministry.

“The government encourages employers and workers to make full use of available programmes to remain competitive and resilient amidst economic uncertainty.

“We encourage employers to press on with business transformation and equip their workers for expanded or redesigned job roles. Workers are encouraged to continue to upskill and be open to new opportunities.”