- 7,057 workers lost jobs in April, 21% increase from 5,855 in March
- Economy Minister said matter requiring attention
- 10,658 job losses recorded in Jan, 7,512 in Feb
- month-on-month increase warranted close monitoring.
- needs to be given attention
- S'gor, KL bear brunt of job losses in March
- S'gor accounted for 29.3% of total job losses
- Kuala Lumpur 25.6% of job losses
My Comments: Let me tell you directly. There is little that could have been done to avoid these job losses in Malaysia. You cannot blame it entirely on higher fuel prices either.
Because there are other countries like the USA, Japan, Singapore which are seeing strong employment and shortages of labour supply. South Korea has reported +108,000 new jobs in Jan 2026, +234,000 new jobs in Feb 2026, +206,000 new jobs in Mar 2026.
They have all been affected by higher fuel prices too but obviously they are much better at managing their economies. They are creating jobs.
The more relevant question is will the situation inside the country get better or will it get worse? Will there be more job losses, and say on an annual basis? If the situation does not improve then it will certainly affect the prospects for the ruling coalition in a General Election.
If the situation does not improve they will face increasing unpopularity and higher risks at the polls. There is no need for rocket science to understand simple things like that. The more time passes, I think their goose is going to get really burnt.
