Q2 ad volumes up 39.4%; high demand in merchandising, purchasing sector
By FELDA CHAY

THE professional job market is heating up, particularly for those in the merchandising and purchasing sector, according to the latest report from HR consultancy firm Robert Walters.

Tracking advertisement volumes for professional positions such as engineers and lawyers, Robert Walters found that job advertisements rose 39.4 per cent in the second quarter of this year, as compared with the same period last year. The results, from monitoring job boards and newspapers here, suggest that employer confidence has returned - a trend that is in line with the local economy's massive rebound.

This surge in hiring in Q2 was also seen in China, Japan and Hong Kong - economies that the Robert Walters Asia Job Index covered. China saw the largest jump in the number of job ads seeking professionals with a 90.2 per cent increase in the number of ads put up within the period, as compared with last year.

Hong Kong saw a 32.3 per cent rise, and Japan 88.5 per cent.
In Singapore, the merchandising and purchasing sector appears to have had a big recruitment drive from April to June. Within those three months, the industry saw the number of ads put up for professionals in the business rise to 983 in June from 752 in April.

Customer service and account servicing staff also look to be in high demand within the quarter. The number of advertisements put up for jobs in the area went up to 1,679 in June from 1,394 in April.

Robert Walters added that industries that were the hardest hit by the recent financial melt-down, such as financial services and commerce, have resumed their pre-crisis hiring activity levels.

Said Andrea Ross, managing director of Robert Walters Singapore: 'In fact, we have seen a return to 2006/07 levels in terms of the opportunities for candidates. We have also seen improvement on the corporate advisory side, which is a clear sign of the market recovering, resulting in an uplift in jobs in sectors such as compliance, audit and risk management.

'We have also seen a rise in levels of consumer confidence and this has also affected the consumer banking business positively.'

But the financial services sector might see hiring activity slow down at the end of the third quarter.
'This is traditionally a time when candidates in the financial services sector are less likely to move as we approach the bonus season.'

This moderation is unlikely to reverse the trend of hiring growth in Singapore, Ms Ross said. 'A noticeable increment would be on the contract opportunities that exist for both IT and non-IT functions, with contract lengths ranging from 6-12 months, as companies start to favour a more flexible workforce.'