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Hong Kong employers have turned more optimistic about hiring in the fourth quarter, with the city’s Net Employment Outlook rising 23 percentage points from the previous quarter to 14 percent, according to a ManpowerGroup survey.
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Among the 603 employers surveyed, 30 percent said they planned to increase headcount over the next three months, while 16 percent expected to reduce staffing levels. The remaining 54 percent anticipated no change.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Net Employment Outlook improved from minus 9 percent in the third quarter to 14 percent for the fourth quarter.
Most sectors recorded positive hiring intentions, led by information technology with an outlook of 27 percent. Finance and insurance followed at 21 percent, while professional, scientific and technical services stood at 15 percent.
Lancy Chui Yuk-shan, senior vice president of ManpowerGroup Greater China, attributed the rebound partly to wider adoption of artificial intelligence, which is driving technology transformation across businesses.
She also pointed to Hong Kong’s active initial public offering market and stronger demand in the financial sector as factors supporting recruitment.
Other sectors with positive outlooks included trade and logistics at 10 percent, manufacturing at 7 percent, services at 5 percent, and construction and real estate at 2 percent.
Healthcare and social services was the only sector to report a negative outlook, at minus 3 percent.
Chui said the extension of retirement ages from 60 to 65 in parts of the sector, together with lower staff turnover, had helped stabilize existing teams and reduced the immediate need for external hiring.
Despite the quarterly recovery, she cautioned that the sustainability of the improvement would depend on broader economic conditions.
Chui said Hong Kong’s unemployment rate could rise to between 3.6 percent and 3.8 percent as upcoming labor-market data begin to reflect the entry of new graduates into the workforce.
Globally, hiring intentions remained positive across all 42 countries and territories surveyed.
The global Net Employment Outlook for the fourth quarter stood at 29 percent, up 3 percentage points from the previous quarter, indicating broadly positive recruitment conditions worldwide.
