Taipei, March 15 (CNA) Taiwan’s hiring outlook improved in the second quarter of this year with demand for workers in the energy and utility sector strongest among the major business sectors, according to human resources advisory firm ManpowerGroup.
After seasonal adjustments, Taiwan’s net hiring outlook index for the April-June period rose to 20 percent, up from 17 percent in the first quarter and also up from 12 percent in the second quarter of 2024, the latest ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey found.
The survey, which reflects hiring confidence among employers, calculates the net hiring index after seasonal adjustments, by subtracting the percentage of employers anticipating a decline in the size of their workforce from the percentage expecting an increase.
In the latest job outlook survey in Taiwan, 37 percent of 630 employers polled expect an increase in employee numbers in the second quarter, while 18 percent anticipate a decrease, and about 43 percent expect no change in the size of their workforce.
As a result, the net hiring outlook index before seasonal adjustment stood at 19 percent with the figure after seasonal adjustments at 20 percent, according to ManpowerGroup.
The energy and utility sector recorded the highest net hiring outlook index of 54 percent for the second quarter, up sharply from minus 48 percent in the first quarter.
ManpowerGroup said in a boom in artificial intelligence development, demand for electricity from enterprises, in particular in the high-tech segment, is on the rise, boosting needs for talent in the energy and utility sector.
The financial/insurance and real estate sector came in second with its net hiring outlook index at 50 percent in the second quarter, up from 31 percent in the first quarter, ahead of the information technology sector, which includes semiconductor suppliers, with the index at 38 percent in the second quarter, up from 11 percent in the first quarter, the survey found.
In the Asia Pacific region, Taiwan ranked No. 4 in terms of second-quarter hiring outlook among the seven countries and regions surveyed by ManpowerGroup.
India took the top spot with its net hiring outlook after seasonal adjustments at 43 percent, ahead of China (32 percent) and Singapore (27 percent), while Hong Kong came last (No. 7) with a hiring outlook of 11 percent, the survey showed.
(By Liu Chien-ling and Frances Huang)
Enditem/cs
