Recruiting in China

Chinese employers’ hiring plans reached a six-year high as a recovery in the world’s third- largest economy and the Shanghai World Expo boosted demand, a private survey showed.

Manpower Inc., the world’s second-largest provider of temporary workers, said 31 percent of employers expect to expand their workforce in the third quarter, citing a survey of 3,607 companies. A measure of the employment outlook rose to the highest since the survey began in 2005, the company said on its website today.

After job losses in the economic slowdown, “the situation seems to be recovering quickly, and many companies are in urgent need of laborers to meet the increased demand,” said Danny Yuan, managing director for Manpower China. “In regions like the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta, employers’ demand for laborers has resulted in a blue-collar labor shortage.”

Higher demand for workers may fuel pay increases that HSBC Holdings Plc said yesterday are “good news” for the economy because they will boost private consumption, putting a floor under growth. Foxconn Technology Group and Honda Motor Co. have raised wages and local governments have announced increases to minimum pay levels.

The expo is boosting demand for services workers, Yuan said.