Chart of the Day: Higher employment in services sector offset declines in construction

About 9,700 workers for services in community, finance, and transport sectors were employed in Q1.

This chart from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) shows that total employment growth in the first quarter of 2018 was supported by an increase in services (9,700 excluding foreign domestic workers).

It was led by increases in the number of jobs in community, social & personal services (3,900), financial & insurance services (2,800), transportation & storage (2,300) and information & communications (1,800).

On the whole, the employment growth in services more than offset the decline in manufacturing and construction, which mainly affected Work Permit Holders. Manufacturing and construction saw employment contract by 3,800 and 5,600 respectively in the first quarter of 2018, though the decline was smaller than a year ago (-4,400 and -12,500 respectively)

Total employment grew by 3,700 people in the first quarter of 2018. Excluding foreign domestic workers (FDW), total employment grew by 400. The increase came after the seasonal high in the previous quarter (10,700) and was a reversal from the decline in the same period a year ago (-9,400).