What’s driving Hong Kong’s hiring rebound?

Critical thinking, data analysis, creativity, and ethical decision-making are amongst the top skills in demand. 

Hiring sentiment in Hong Kong is poised for recovery in 2026, with 34% of employers planning to increase headcount, and professional confidence is markedly higher.

Only 30% of employees now report low confidence in job prospects, down 16 percentage points YoY, according to a report from Robert Walters.

Despite the improved outlook, a clear gap remains between pay expectations and employer budgets.

Whilst 81% of job seekers expect a 10% or higher salary bump to switch roles, most commonly in the 16% to 20% range, 83% of employers plan to offer less than 6%, creating a mismatch that is expected to continue extending hiring timelines.

Job security and stability have risen as top priorities, now cited by 40% of talent amongst their three most valued employer attributes.

Employers cited their biggest hiring challenges as a lack of qualified candidates (69%), overly high expectations (48%), and reluctance among candidates to move (23%).

The rebound in hiring is supported by macroeconomic tailwinds: Hong Kong saw its strongest first-half IPO performance since 2021 in 2025, with capital raised roughly sevenfold year on year, especially benefiting financial and professional services recruitment.

Flexible workforce models are also gaining traction, with Statement of Work arrangements already in place at 23% of companies, and nearly 9% planning to adopt them next year.

Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is reshaping the workplace– 58% of employers have implemented AI, and 81% anticipate that more than a quarter of their workforce will require reskilling within five years.

Critical thinking, data analysis, creativity, and ethical decision-making are among the top skills in demand. AI remains broadly viewed as a net positive by 65% of professionals.