Recent study commissioned by Kelly Services projected that manufacturing and construction industry boom will be the key contributors to positive employment growth for Malaysia in the year ahead. According to its Malaysia Salary Guide for 2018/19, this trend is expected to foster growth in the banking and finance sectors.

The report indicated that this growth will lead to an increasing demand for high skilled talents as local companies are planning to go global while multinationals look for a pathway into the Southeast Asian market.

With the uncertainty of ringgit value and changes in regulation, the banking and financial services sector is expected to remain stable for 2018. As activities in the capital markets are picking up, banks are forecasted to see higher core earnings that will bring positive impact for those working in this sector. The report said that corporate and investment bankers will be one of the most demanded positions in this sector in 2018, making them among the highest paid roles across all sectors, New Straits Times reports.

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It also said that Malaysia will need about 200,000 engineers to meet employer’s demands for the job roles. This number is three times more than the 70,000 registered engineers presently in the country. Similarly, roles such as the head of production and quality assurance will be in high demand as well as the manufacturing sector is expected to grow 5.3 percent this year.

Regarding the findings, Kelly Services Malaysia deputy country head, Brian Sim said, “The demand for highly skilled employees will compound as we move towards an increasingly digital future. It is important that Malaysian professionals are in-sync with the requirements of key economic sectors to ensure that they remain attractive candidates as employees in the future.”

The report stated that while the Ministry of Education found 77.3 percent graduates in the country gained employment within their first six months, the Salary Guide noted a misalignment between the talent supply and the demand in some key sectors.

“Due to the changing regulatory requirements and technological advancement, jobs such as corporate bankers and senior accountants, while being among the most demanded jobs for 2018, will face new challenges moving forward,” it said.

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