Recent study commissioned by online career and recruitment portal Monster.com revealed that tech companies in Malaysia were the most active recruiters from February last year to this year. According to its latest report on the country’s employment index, Monster.com recorded an 11 percent year-on-year growth of online hiring activity within the said period.

Among the industries showing the highest growth are the information technology, telecom/internet service provider, and business process outsourcing/IT-enabled services. These industries are indicated to grow at 52 percent year-on-year, it said in its annual report.

Monster.com’s chief executive officer for the Asia Pacific and Middle-Eastern regions, Abhijeet Mukherjee commented that the launch of the Digital Free Trade Zone and introduction of multiple digital initiatives in Malaysia’s national agenda had resulted in significant progress in the country’s digital transformation.

Other top growth sectors between February last year and the corresponding month this year were logistics, courier/freight/transportation, shipping/marine (45 percent); oil and gas (41 percent), as well as hospitality (23 percent).

See: Salary Too Low among Reasons why Malaysians Picky Over Jobs

“We are seeing a surge in the battle for talent in tech, e-commerce and professional services, signalling strong demand for niche skills to match and adapt to changing local and global market needs,” he said in the report.

“Students and employees alike should always stay ahead of industry trends to grasp and anticipate changing market needs, and in turn consistently upgrade their skills and find new opportunities.”

Meanwhile, industries which showed a decline in online recruitment activities from February last year to the corresponding month this year were the banking, financial services, and insurance sector that recorded a decline of 4 percent; retail (-2 percent); and advertising, market research, public relations, media and entertainment (-2 percent). Companies running in the production/manufacturing, automotive and ancillary sector also saw a slow growth of 3 percent, The Malaysian Insight reports.

In terms of occupations, among those seeing the highest growth during the period are in software, hardware and telecommunication recorded a growth of 74 percent, then followed by hospitality and travel (26 percent), sales and business development (21 percent), and purchase/logistics/supply chain (20 percent). On the other hand, jobs that recorded the lowest growth were in customer service (4 percent), administration (2 percent), finance and accounts (1 percent), and marketing and communications (0 percent).

Read also: ILO and MOM Renewed Partnership to Push Decent Work in Southeast Asia