Bullish prospects for hiring expectations in 2H14

But the financial services sector is down.

It has been observed that overall net hiring expectations in Hong Kong climbed from 1Q14’s 32.2% to 46.2% for 2H14.

According to a research note from Barclays, which based its statements from the findings of recruitment firm Hudson Hong Kong, although the headline finding is very similar to the results in 1Q14, the industry breakdown was very different.

The report noted that, unlike 1Q when net hiring expectations for the financial services sector rose from 36.7% to 49.5%, 2H14 is down by 6.2ppt to 43.3%. Instead, much of the expected 2H pick up is driven by the consumer and manufacturing industry.

Here's more from Barclays:

Although the headline finding of a continued pick up in net hiring is similar to the results from 1Q14, this masks a very different picture at the sector level.

Back in 1Q14, the pick up in net hiring was very much driven by the financial services sector, which saw net hiring rising from 36.7% in 4Q13 to 49.5%. This time around, firms in the financial services expect net hiring activities to moderate with 43.5% in net hiring mode.

Specifically, firms that expect to increase headcount decreased from 53.6% to 44.8% while firms that expect to decrease headcount also dropped from 4.1% to 1.5%. Instead, the key engine behind the overall pick up in net hiring came from the Manufacturing and Industrial sector where net hiring expectations increased from 21.7% to 53.6%.

Another surprise in 2H hiring expectations was the surge in net hiring for the consumer sector. Despite facing slowing retail sales growth, net hiring expectations for the consumer sector rose from 31.6% to 46.8%.