20/06/2013
Please find below the most recent issue of the Global Talent Update (GTU)
Europe, Middle East, and Africa
A new report by deputy secretary-general and chief economist Pier Carlo Padoan said that the European Central Bank needs to investigate more ways to promote job growth, as the region continues to struggle to climb out of double-digit recession and unemployment remained virtually unchanged in April. The 27-member EU reported 11 pc unemployment. However, the jobless rate among many countries that use the euro stood at 12.2 pc. Both Greece and Spain have jobless rates of 25 pc, with Portugal coming in at 17.8 pc.
Germany appeared to be faring better than most countries, coming in at 5.4 pc, with Luxembourg reporting a 5.6 pc rate. Austria had the lowest jobless rate of all EU countries at 4.9 pc.
France's employment outlook remained particularly dismal, hitting a 14-year high during the first quarter of this year to stand at 10.8 pc. Frederik Ducrozet, an economist at Crédit Agricole in Paris, said the country is not expected to see stabilisation in the jobless rate until the middle of 2014.
Youth unemployment continued to plague countries in the Middle East and North Africa, with the jobless rate of younger people remaining at more than 30 pc. The Monster Employment Index found there was growth in only two of the 12 industry sectors for the region over the past year, including education, which raised 12 pc, followed by the hospitality and travel industry, which was up by 10 pc. Some of the biggest losses were seen in the chemical/plastics/paints/fertiliser/pesticides sector, which registered its biggest annual drop at 32 pc. Long-term, the customer service sector also suffered a large drop in job growth, down 38 pc. Growth in engineering, construction and real estate remained unchanged.
In the Middle East, Egypt led in year-over-year trends for online opportunity growth at 6 pc, followed by Bahrain at 5 pc. Kuwait had the biggest decline in jobs over the past year - down 23 pc. A newly released Global Economic Prospects report noted that developing country GDP is expected to be 5.1 pc this year, with the Middle East and North Africa projected to grow by 2.5 pc.
Asia-Pacific
Unemployment in Hong Kong was steady during the first quarter of 2013, unchanged at 3.5 pc in the period ending in April, according to the Census of Statistics. Secretary of Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung said that overall, employers remain cautious on hiring in the short term, yet "resilience of domestic demand should provide some cushion to the overall employment situation." The seasonally adjusted jobless rate was also unchanged, and was in line with a median 3.5 pc forecasted by economists.
Leaders in China are expressing concern as the unemployment rate in urban areas and among college graduates remains high. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said that the country's urban jobless rate for
2012 was 4.1 pc as economic growth slowed the employment trend and on June 10, Premier Li Keqiang held a nationwide teleconference to announce that almost 7 million tertiary students would enter the job market in July, the largest number in China's history.
The news was a bit better in Australia, where the unemployment rate dipped from 5.6 pc in April to 5.5 pc in May, largely due to the manufacturing sector. Despite the better-than-expected number, labour officials said that full-time employment actually declined by 5,300 jobs, which was offset by an increase of 6,400 part-time jobs.
Americas
Unemployment in the United States rose slightly in May, while companies added a better-than-expected 175,000 jobs. Despite employment rising across a number of industries, including retail and professional services, the jobless rate for May was 7.6 pc - up from 7.5 pc in April. The addition of jobs surpassed most analysts' expectations by approximately 10,000.
The professional and business services sector added 57,000 positions in May.
The leisure and hospitality sector gained 38,000 jobs, with retail trade increasing by 28,000. The healthcare sector continued to add positions with home health services leading the way at 7,000 positions, followed by outpatient care at 4,000. Other major industries, including wholesale trade, transportation and mining, construction and manufacturing, all experienced little or no change. Government payrolls shrank by 14,000.
Turning to South America, Brazil's unemployment ticked up to 5.8 pc in April from 5.7 in March. Analysts surveyed following the report said that they believe the GDP will increase by 2.98 pc this year, indicating that it will be the first time it will not surpass 3 pc.
Mexico's unemployment rate, meanwhile, showed some signs of recovery, rising to 5.14 pc in April after hitting a low of 4.74 pc in February.
June 2013