Pay rises of up to 40% are expected in the next 12 months as staff shortages in certain key professions continue to prevail in the Singapore market, according to a new survey.

The biggest sector to benefit from this salary hike will be professionals in finance. They can expect pay rises of 15% to 30% as Singapore develops further into a global financial hub, global recruitment firm Michael Page International reported. 

The rest of the sectors expected to join in the pay rises are the real estate property market and construction sector.

“Employers need to offer competitive salaries to secure and retain talent,” Florence Ng, managing director of Michael page International (Singapore) was quoted as saying The Straits Times.

In a separate report by the Ministry of Manpower’s Research and Statistics Department, Singapore is said to be undergoing continued employment growth.

Unemployment rate has declined to 2.4% in June 2007 from 2.9% in March 2007. This number is one of the best after the economic downturn in 2001.