Singapore Tops in White-Collar Jobs Availability in APAC: Indeed Study

Singapore, 5 September 2023: Singapore has created more white-collar jobs than other markets in Asia, according to recent data from Indeed, a leading global matching and hiring platform.

More jobs in management, tech, engineering and banking are created in Singapore compared to Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines, said to a study by Indeed. Figures from the leading global job site show that 9.7% of Singapore job postings are in software development compared to 5.4% in these other Asian economies – highlighting a gap of 4.4 %. The difference in Singapore’s job creation from other Asian economies reflects Singapore’s status as a finance and tech hub.

On the other hand, Singapore creates relatively fewer roles in retail, food preparation, and personal care. Only 3.1% of job postings are retail, compared to 9.6% in these other Asian economies. Data shows that the job market in Singapore tends to create relatively more white-collar jobs and relatively fewer blue-collar jobs than in other Asian economies.

Job postings in July

In July, Singapore job postings on Indeed fell 1.9% compared with a month earlier – the ninth consecutive monthly decline – which left postings 17.6% lower than a year ago. While Singapore job postings are at their lowest level since August 2021, they are still 66% above their level prior to the pandemic.

“We anticipate that job postings will continue to moderate over the remainder of the year, consistent with a more challenging economic environment. The decline in job postings is the first real sign that softer economic growth is impacting the labour market. Singapore’s unemployment rate has increased slightly to 1.9% but remains low by historical standards,” said Callam Pickering, APAC Senior Economist at Indeed.

Postings down in most occupations

While postings have continued to decline recently, there are some occupations that have defied the national trend. Postings in around one-third of occupational categories have increased over the past three months.

The biggest gains have been in sectors such as physicians & surgeons, veterinary and pharmacy, up around 30%. These big gains have offset some large declines earlier in the year. Other strong performers have been security & public safety, medical information and medical technician.

Recent weakness has been concentrated in sports (-25%), beauty & wellness (-20%) and mathematics (19.4%).

Pickering said, “While postings have fallen significantly over the past year, it’s important to recognise that job postings in almost every occupational category are still above pre-pandemic levels. Job creation may have eased from its peak but it still remains incredibly strong by historical standards.”