'Job market slowing down on economic uncertainties, inflation'

NEW DELHI: Employment market is seeing slowdown with sluggish hiring activity in telecom, insurance and realty sectors amid economic uncertainties and rising inflationary pressures, says job portal Naukri.com.

"Signs of slowdown are visible in the Indian labour market. There seems to be no urgency in hiring by companies.

"Hiring has definitely slowed down in telecom, insurance, construction and financial services," Naukri.com's Managing Director and CEO Hitesh Oberoi told PTI.

Apart from global economic uncertainties, persistently high inflation is also playing spoilsport for the domestic labour market, mainly in rate-sensitive sectors -- real estate and auto.

"Rising inflation and consequently higher interest rates have resulted in slower growth in sectors like real estate and automobiles. This will impact job creation in these sectors," Oberoi noted.

Headline inflation, which has been ruling over 9 per cent mark since December 2010, touched a 13-month high of 9.78 per cent in August.

The central bank has hiked key policy rates as many as 12 times since March last year to tame inflation. With rising rates, corporates have also expressed concerns about expensive credit hurting their expansion plans.

Grappling with global economic uncertainties, especially the escalating European debt turmoil, many companies worldwide are cautious about their business prospects, resulting in slower hiring activities.

"If the European debt crisis worsens in the coming months, this could have an adverse impact on overall job market, especially for exporters," Oberoi said.