Preliminary data from the Labour Market Advance Release Third Quarter 2022 showed that Singapore's total employment, excluding Migrant Domestic Workers, expanded by 75,600 in the third quarter, continuing the strong growth observed in the previous quarter.
Non-residents accounted for the majority of the total employment expansion, as non-resident employment continued its rebound towards its pre-COVID level.
In September 2022, the total employment surpassed its pre-COVID level in December 2019 by 1.7 percent.
Meanwhile, the country's unemployment rates edged up slightly in September 2022 to 2 percent overall, 2.9 percent for residents, and 3.1 percent for citizens, after trending down to a six-year low in August 2022. However, the rates remained within the pre-COVID range.
Besides, the number of retrenchments increased to 1,600 in the third quarter of 2022, from the previous quarter's all-time low of 830. The retrenchments were from the manufacturing sector, mainly due to discontinuation of product lines, as well as the services sector, mainly due to business reorganization or restructuring.
The ministry said that a deteriorating global economic environment, higher global inflation, as well as geopolitical tensions, will impact Singapore's labor market in the coming months.
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