Sentiment towards employment has worsened in the financial, manufacturing, transport and services sectors in particular SINGAPORE, Sept 08 (The Business Times): Employment expectations among businesses in Singapore have taken a turn for the worse for the last quarter of this year, while the overall business sentiment remains downbeat.
On Tuesday (Sept 8), the Singapore Commercial Credit Bureau's (SCCB) latest quarterly survey of 200 business owners and senior executives showed the indicator for employment expectations declining to -13.19 per centage points in the fourth quarter, from -3.29 per centage points in the previous quarter. That level of sentiment is also the most negative for 2020.
It is a contrast from the previous quarter, when employment sentiment had improved from -4.98 per centage points in the second quarter to -3.29 per centage points in the third quarter.
The weakened employment sentiment is largely due to "a tepid outlook in global economic activities which has impacted firms in external-oriented sectors", said SCCB chief executive Audrey Chia.
Firms in Singapore are also turning towards hiring digitally savvy talent and investing in technology in a bid to digitalise and keep manpower costs low during this time, she added.
The survey showed that the sentiment towards employment has worsened in the financial, manufacturing, transport and services sectors in particular.
In the financial sector, for instance, the employment indicator turned negative quarter on quarter, from +33.33 per centage points in Q3 to -33.33 per centage points in Q4.
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