KUALA LUMPUR (May 15): Malaysia’s labour demand expanded 1.4% in the first three months of the year amid continued economic growth supported by resilient domestic demand, official data on Thursday showed.

The economy added 127,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2025, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said in a statement. Out of the total, 97.9% jobs were filled while 2.1% were unfilled, raising vacancy to 194,100 jobs during the quarter.

Malaysia’s labour demand is poised for steady growth, said chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin. The manufacturing sector, in particular, was key to driving job creation while the growing overall labour demand reflects significant progress across key industries, he noted.

More than half of job vacancies were in the manufacturing sector, especially in the electrical, electronic, and optical products sub-sector and petroleum, chemical, rubber and plastic products category.

In terms of skills, the semi-skilled accounted for the largest share of vacancies at 56.3%, followed by skilled at 24.4% and low-skilled at 19.3%.

The number of jobs created rose 3.4% year-on-year to 33,200 in the first quarter. The rise, especially in the skilled and semi-skilled categories, may encourage individuals to “pursue higher education and specialised training, building a workforce with expertise and innovation”, the department noted.