India leads hiring outlook globally in Q1 2025
Employers in India foresee a robust employment outlook in Q1 2025, according to a report on Tuesday.
The report by ManpowerGroup reveals that 53 per cent of employers plan to hire, while 13 per cent anticipate a decrease in their staffing levels in Q1 2025. Meanwhile, 31 per cent do not expect any change.
“India remains one of the world’s fastest-growing large economies, with its position as the global leader in employment outlook for Q1 2025 highlighting the confidence of employers in the country’s economic trajectory,” said Sandeep Gulati, Managing Director, ManpowerGroup India and Middle East.
Compared to Q4 2024, employers in IT (+50 per cent), consumer goods and services (+40 per cent), energy and utilities (+38 per cent), health care and life sciences (+38 per cent), transport and logistics, and automotive (+36 per cent) and communication services (+30 per cent) have shown growth.
The strongest outlook among the regions comes from West India (+43 per cent) increasing by 4 per cent from the previous quarter, closely followed by East India (+41 per cent) which saw a considerable rise of 11 per cent during the same period.
The findings are based on the company’s Employment Outlook Survey data of more than 3,000 employers across various regions of India.
“Significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI), along with public funding have benefitted the IT sector’s employment market, resulting in the sector leading with an Outlook of 50 per cent. With strong contributions from financials and real estate and year-on-year growth across all regions, India’s job market continues to reflect resilience and adaptability amid an uncertain global landscape. Larger organisations are driving this momentum, signaling sustained opportunities for talent across the country,” Gulati said.
Further, the report showed investment from MNCs looking to reduce their operation costs appears to be benefitting India, and the outlook for 2025 looks more positive.
“Economic growth is likely to pick up with increasing consumer spending as inflation potentially subsides, and agricultural output is likely to improve after favorable monsoon conditions. In this mixed environment, India’s employment expectations are expected to grow slightly,” Gulati said.
