Singapore unemployment climbs 2.1% in June

While 5,500 workers were made redundant in Q2.

The decline of unemployment in Singapore was short-lived, as data by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) shows that unemployment grew among residents and citizens in June 2016 after seeing a pullback in March.

Seasonally adjusted overall unemployment rate rose from 1.9% in March 2016 to 2.1% in June 2016. Over the same period, unemployment inched up among residents from 2.7% to 3%, and among citizens from 2.6% to 3.1%, following the previous quarter’s slide.

Further, soft global economic conditions saw total employment grow at a slower pace in Q2. Total employment increased by 5,500 in Q2, lower than Q1’s 13,000 and 2Q15’s 9,700.

Employment growth in the second quarter of 2016 was mainly driven by services (8,600), though the pace came in more sluggish from the previous quarter (13,200). Manufacturing posted a decline in employment (-3,400), while construction stayed flat (400).

Further, layoffs is Q2 climbed from the previous quarter and a year ago. There were 5,500 workers made redundant in Q2, compared to 4,710 in the previous quarter and 3,250 a year ago.

Over the quarter, manufacturing saw a drop in layoffs, while services posted a rise. Layoffs in construction, meanwhile, stayed relatively unchanged.

June 2016 saw total employment edge up 1.3% YoY to 3,674,700. MOM notes this is similar to the 1.4% growth in March 2016, but slower than the average growth of about 2% in 2015.