UOB Group’s Senior Economist Julia Goh and Economist Loke Siew Ting comment on the latest employment figures in Malaysia.

Key Takeaways

“All labour market indicators showed further improvement in Nov 2021 with Malaysia’s unemployment rate holding steady at 4.3%, the labour force participation rate inching up to a historical high of 68.9% (from 68.8% in Oct), and total employment continuing to hit a new high at 15.61m (Oct: 15.55m).”

“The hiring momentum was primarily held up by continued employment in services, manufacturing, and construction sectors, which fully offset the falling employment in agriculture and mining & quarrying sectors.”

“We continue to expect a sustain recovery in Malaysia’s labour market this year amid increasing challenges. This is largely premised on the government’s mitigation strategies to contain the pandemic, ongoing policy support, and additional aids for flood victims. We reiterate our end-2022 jobless rate projection of 3.6% (vs. an estimated 4.2% by end-2021).”