What countries have the highest hiring expectations for the coming year?

IT industry reporting strongest hiring outlook: report

What countries have the highest hiring expectations for the coming year?

The Americas emerged as the most optimistic region in the coming year when it comes to hiring in the latest ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey (MEOS).

The report revealed that global hiring intentions are unchanged, with the world's Net Employment Outlook staying at 25%.

It found that 41% of employers worldwide are expecting an increase in hiring, 40% are expecting no changes, while only 16% are anticipating a reduction of staff members.

Highest global hiring sentiments

Hiring expectations were above the average among organisations with 250 or more employees, with the Information Technology industry (37%) reporting the strongest hiring outlook.

The findings come in the wake of widespread layoff announcements throughout 2024 by big companies such as Sony, eBay, AMD, among others.

Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup Chair & CEO, said the findings indicate that employers are planning on "holding onto the talent they have" while carrying out muted hiring in early 2025.

"The fluctuations we have seen in recent quarters are beginning to stabilise - indicating employers have adapted to ongoing economic uncertainty and are maintaining steady workforce planning," Prising said in a statement.

"The sustained strength in the IT sector and consistent hiring intentions among larger organisations point to stability too – and we hope to see this trend continue into 2025."

Regional hiring outlooks

By region, employers across North, Central, and South America emerged with the strongest hiring outlook of 29%, with the IT sector leading the global industry forecasts at 53%.

The Asia-Pacific region placed second in terms of regional hiring outlooks with 27%, followed by the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region with 19%.

By country, India emerged with the highest hiring expectations with 40%, followed by the United States (34%) and Mexico (32%).