Jobseeker News in Brief (February 2009)

Higher Unemployment for 2009

Economists are projecting Malaysia’s jobless rate to rise to between 4 and 4.5 per cent this year following a third-quarter 2008 spike when lay-offs were four times those in Q2, says the online news portal, The Malaysian Insider.

It noted that some 11,560 workers were retrenched in Q3.

And the rate of job losses is expected to accelerate this year, with estimates that between 200,000 and 400,000 people could be laid off should the global slowdown bite deeper into consumer demand.

The news portal said tor export-reliant Malaysia - the country’s external trade to GDP is 172 per cent - manufacturing would be hit hardest. And the electrical and electronic (E&E) and automotive-related sectors would likely be bruised most.

Click here for more news

(Source: Jobsdb Malaysia)