New survey highlights boom in Malaysia’s hospitality and travel sectors

Jobs in the hospitality and travel sector have grown 169% over the past year in the country, according to the latest Foundit Insights Tracker’s (FIT) Malaysian report.

Foundit, the online recruitment platform, said its October 2023 report also reveals a year-on-year growth of 16% e-recruitment in Malaysia.

Its report noted: “Additionally, a month-on-month (MoM) analysis also indicated an increase reflecting a positive job market. The rising index values reveal a thriving labour market that will benefit employers and job seekers alike.”

The tracker also showed that there had been an increase in hiring in the engineering, construction and real estate sectors; however, the oil and gas, banking, financial services & insurance and IT/telecom industries saw a drop in recruitment.

Foundit chief executive officer Sekhar Garisa said the findings indicate “a promising future” for Malaysia’s labour market.

“However, in this competitive landscape, companies are  emphasising on individuals with specialised skills. Hence, job seekers must always be aware of the changing demands of the industry and equip themselves with the required skills.

“Upskilling and continuous learning will be the key to unlocking new opportunities and thriving in this dynamic landscape,” he added.

The hospitality industry saw significant year-on-year growth of 111%, driven by Malaysia’s recovering tourism industry, which is attracting an increasing number of domestic and foreign tourists.

Similarly, retail showed strong year-on-year growth in recruitment of 108%, reflecting the jump in retail sales.

Engineering, construction and real estate industries also saw year-on-year increases in October 2023 with a 42% rise in the hiring activity due to infrastructure developments, government policies and rapid urbanisation, the report said.

It said Malaysia’s economic recovery created an online demand for other job roles, including sales & business development (44%) and marketing & communications (12%).

The Foundit Insights Tracker (FIT) presents a snapshot of employer online recruitment activity nationwide. It is based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities from a representative selection of online career platforms

 

Malaysian GDP set to grow 4.7% in 2024

Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate is set to rise to 4.7% in 2024, supported by the recovery in trade and sustained growth in domestic demand, according to MIDF Research.

The company’s director and head of strategy, Imran Yassin Md Yusof, said positive job market conditions, income growth and continued recovery in the tourism sector would also boost domestic spending.

“Moreover, stabilisation of monetary policy in major countries, a stronger recovery in China and supportive global commodity prices are expected to boost Malaysia’s external front in 2024,” he said at MIDF Research’s recent ‘2024 Market Outlook Presentation: Cruising Along’.

He said the research firm is “cautiously optimistic about the economic and equities market growth prospect for 2024, with many of the factors which influenced 2023, such as inflation and interest rates, seeming to have waned”. He added that commodity prices are expected to remain stable.

Imran said: “The domestic economy is expected to be anchored by continuous steady consumer spending, busier tourism-related activities, and construction of infrastructure projects.

“Malaysia’s job market remains in good shape as reflected by the continuous growth in employment, a decline in unemployment and lower jobless rate,” he said. However, he said inflation would likely hover above 3% next year.

In terms of the global economy, Imran said growth in 2024 would remain moderate, below the average of 3.8% recorded during the 2010-2019 period. However, growth would hampered by a variety of global factors including policy tightening by central banks to tackle inflation and geopolitical risks.

“While global production activities could pick up, recovering from the lows this year, consumer spending will remain a key factor to support growth next year on the back of easing inflation, healthy labour market and rising income,” he said.