6 in 10 S'pore firms worry skills gaps will hinder transformation

Firms also feel that weakening trade links may have a bigger impact here: WEF report

- Tay Hong Yi

More major employers have signaled that fragmenting global economic links are especially likely to shake up their business in Singapore than the rest of the world.

Around 64 per cent of Singapore employers expect their business to be impacted by geo-economic fragmentation, twice the global average recorded across 55 economies, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) report on the future of jobs. The figure is second to only South Korea's 71 per cent.

The Jan 8 report drew from a survey of over 1,000 international employers across 55 economies, conducted from May to September 2024. But it does not indicate how many of these employers have a Singapore base.

The WEF's results indicate weaker global trade links, together with rapid technological advancement in the Republic's developed economy, are likely to change the type of jobs on offer and increase the skills threshold needed to qualify for these roles.

"Similar to global and regional peers, firms in Singapore expect skills gaps, regulatory barriers and organisational resistance to hinder business transformation," said the WEF.

Six in 10 of firms polled here said they expect skills gaps in the labour market to hinder transformation, the barrier most commonly reported by employers here, though this is marginally lower than the global average of 63 per cent.