Mark Carriban, Hudson's managing director for Asia:"Hiring expectations are now at an 11-year low. For the first time, The Hudson Report shows that more employers plan to reduce headcount than to increase it."

According to a survey of multinational corporations in Asia, hiring expectations for the second quarter of 2009 are continuing to fall and many employers are implementing HR-related cost-cutting measures.

The newly-released Hudson Report says China has the highest hiring expectations for the second quarter (Q2) of 2009, with 30% forecasting headcount growth, but the proportion of respondents expecting to cut staff has risen from 8% in Q1 of 2009 to 21% this quarter.

Meanwhile, hiring expectations in Hong Kong are the lowest since The Hudson Report began in 1998, having fallen to 14% this quarter.

Japan reports the steepest decline in hiring expectations compared to the previous quarter. Twenty-two per cent expect to increase hiring, down from 31% in Q1 2009.

Expectations in Singapore are falling, but not as sharply as in recent quarters - 20% say they will grow headcount in this quarter compared to 23% in Q1 2009.

About half of the employers surveyed in the four markets have cut HR-related costs in the last six months. Reducing headcount is the most widely implemented cost-cutting initiative, followed by lower bonus payments.

Employers continue to use a range of channels to recruit staff, with recruitment consultancies widely used across all markets.

Companies in all four markets are taking measures to maintain staff morale in the challenging economic conditions, with open communication between management and staff, and reinforcement messages from the CEO or senior management being the most popular.

The Hudson Report is a quarterly survey of forward-looking employer hiring expectations. In the latest report for Asia - Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and China (Beijing and Shanghai) - about 3,000 decision makers from multinational organisations in all major industry sectors were surveyed in February.

The report establishes itself as a key business and economic indicator based on the premise that employer hiring expectations reflect employers' confidence in their markets.

For more information on the report, visit www.hudson.com or email hkresume@hudson.com.