Chart of the Day: Check out the escalating job losses in the uninspiring manufacturing sector

4,300 manufacturing workers lost their jobs in 3Q.

Employees in the manufacturing sector can’t seem to catch a break as weak demand continues to be the thorn in the sector’s side.

According to a report by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the job losses in 3Q came just after 4,400 workers were laid off in the same sector last quarter.

While MAS attributed the job shedding to weaker demand for the manufacturing clusters, the report said the ongoing restructuring in the electronics industry also aggravated the employment contraction.

MAS added that the employment gains in the construction sector also slowed, adding only 3,800 workers in Q3, after adding double that number the previous quarter.

Meanwhile, overall employment was buoyed by the growth in the reliable services sector, which added 17,000 workers in Q3, despite only mustering 6,500 jobs last quarter.

“The step-up in services employment was supported by firm labour demand in community, social & personal (CSP) services, as well as in professional services. The overall unemployment rate remained unchanged at 2.0% in Q3 2015,” the report said.