, China

Overseas Job Seekers Revive their Career in Asia

As frustration over unemployment remains high after 18 months, a recruitment specialist is advising job seekers, to look for greener pastures outside their home countries and set their sights on Asia.

In China over the past three months we’ve recorded a 30 per cent increase in total number of applications. The country’s popularity is not surprising given the opportunities available.
Most sectors are hiring and there has been a significant increase in the number of permanent jobs registered with us this last quarter compared with the previous quarter. Demand for talent is high within banking and finance, with vacancies up 23 per cent.

Salaries are also on the rise. Those working in financial markets can expect increases of up to 15 per cent after a good yearly performance review or if changing roles within the same company and by as much as 30 per cent when changing employers. Roles within commerce and industry are also commanding higher salaries with increases of about 15 to 20 per cent.
But it’s not only job seekers that are moving to China. We have seen an increasing number of international companies establishing themselves here as they attempt to capitalise on the strength of the local economy. Hays is already working in partnership with many of these companies on a global basis however having the expertise at a local level is a real advantage.
In order to handle the increase in demand, we ourselves have been on a recruitment drive and have subsequently seen some record results.

Over the last year we have doubled our staff numbers, tripled the number of people we’ve placed into jobs and quadrupled our fee growth. We have ambitious growth plans for the future and aim to double our headcount again in the next 12 months.
We are currently seeking recruiting experts from both the local market and abroad who are keen to experience first-hand the scale and speed of the transformation of the Chinese economy. We are looking for people working in the banking and finance sectors with strong sales drive, exceptional communication and influencing skills and ideally management experience.
 

Emma Charnock
Regional Director of Hays in Hong Kong and China
[email protected]

Join Singapore Business Review community
Join Singapore Business Review community
A NOTE FROM SINGAPORE BUSINESS REVIEW

Reaching the people who run Asia's businesses is harder than it used to be.

Inboxes are crowded. Attention is short. The executives you most want to reach — the founders, CFOs, and operators who actually move budgets — are the hardest to find through the usual channels. If you're building a company, a category, or a reputation, you already know this.

We've spent twenty years building the room they read. Singapore Business Review is where senior decision makers in Singapore and across Southeast Asia come for business coverage they can't get elsewhere — in print, online, and in person at the summits and roundtables we host across seven markets.

If you have something these readers should know about — a point of view worth publishing, a product worth their attention, an event worth their time — we'd like to hear what you're trying to do.

Top News

Mi Material launches $215m IPO amidst Asia, US expansion plans
The company plans to establish an R&D and demo centre in Texas.Semiconductor materials unit Mi Material Holding Ltd has launched a $215m initial public offering (IPO) on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) Mainboard to support its expansion plans across Asia and the United States (US).
Markets
Keppel REIT to buy 51% of Keppel South Central
The 33-storey Grade A building in Tanjong Pagar is priced at $626.2m.
Maybank deploys AI to prevent banking disruptions
ServiceNow will support technology monitoring across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia under a five-year agreement.

Exclusives

Singapore opens door to foreign stablecoins under tighter rules
Banks may need separate companies to issue stablecoins under the proposed framework.
Singapore's most notable architecture professionals under 40 of 2026
The honourees span five firms, with women in the majority and a combined portfolio that includes a $960m hospital campus.