00:00Right now, companies around the world are doing something they haven't done in a while.
00:07Slowing down and rethinking how they hire.
00:11Not because the economy is collapsing, but because a lot of big changes are happening all at once.
00:18Trade rules are shifting. Artificial intelligence is getting really advanced.
00:23And the push for cleaner energy is no longer just a buzzword. It's policy.
00:29So, what's actually going on?
00:36Let's start with trade.
00:37On April 2, 2025, US President Donald Trump announced a sweeping new tariff policy.
00:43A 10% baseline on all imports and much steeper rates of up to 50% for 57 trading partners.
00:51Most of the higher tariffs were paused within days,
00:54except for China, where rates jumped to 145% before planting to 30% with negotiations still ongoing.
01:02The move marked a clear shift. The global economy is shifting back toward protectionism.
01:08Tariffs on technology and electronics, especially from Asia, are now in focus.
01:13So companies, especially multinationals, are adjusting.
01:16They're shifting production to friendly countries, also known as friendshoring.
01:22Malaysia's been one of the winners here.
01:24Big names like Intel, Infineon, and Micron have all made fresh investments.
01:30But even with such new activity, demand remains difficult to predict.
01:34Post-pandemic, chip sales cooled.
01:37In Penang, hiring slowed. Some plants paused expansion plants.
01:42We saw a similar pattern with glove makers. Remember the boom during COVID?
01:46Top Glove, one of the world's largest producers, had to shut down several factories in 2023.
01:53Too much supply, not enough buyers.
01:56And then there's tech. After years of hiring sprees, the brakes came on hard in 2025.
02:02Meta and Microsoft cut over 30,000 jobs globally.
02:06Almost 20,000 of those were in Silicon Valley.
02:10Singapore, a regional tech hub, felt the spillover too.
02:14The reason? Many of these companies scaled too fast during the pandemic.
02:18Now they're trimming back and investing in automation and AI.
02:23But tech isn't the only one.
02:25In the US, retail is bracing for a wave of closures.
02:29Analysts expect more than 15,000 stores to shut their doors this year.
02:33A shift that could affect up to 200,000 jobs.
02:37Meanwhile, in Europe, industrial players like Thyssen Group are making cuts too.
02:421,800 jobs gone from its auto parts division, citing weak demand and supply uncertainty.
02:50Now, let's talk energy.
02:52The green transition. It's no longer just hypothetical.
02:55Governments are setting hard targets.
02:58Investors are demanding low-carbon plants.
03:01In Malaysia, companies like Petronas and Tanaga National are expanding into renewables.
03:07That's good news in the long run, especially when geopolitical tensions and volatile commodity prices
03:12result in unpredictable overhead.
03:15But in the short term, it means a bit of market adjustment will be necessary on the road ahead.
03:21It's happening elsewhere too.
03:23Carmakers are shifting to electric vehicles.
03:26Coal plants are being retired.
03:28Solar fields are scaling up.
03:30Jobs are moving to reflect the need for different, greener skill sets, not vanishing overnight.
03:36At the same time, local banks are grappling with tightening regulations and rising non-performing loans,
03:42forcing them to streamline branches and retreat staff for digital banking operations.
03:48In retail, brick-and-mortar chains are closing storefronts amid fluctuations in consumer spending
03:53and the rise of e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Shopee, sparking realignments into logistics and
03:59digital marketing over in-person sales.
04:02Overlaying all of this is AI.
04:05It's no longer just about cool demos.
04:08It's replacing real jobs.
04:10In Malaysia, ByteDance, the company behind TikTok, cut hundreds of moderation roles last year.
04:16AI tools were simply faster, cheaper, and increasingly good enough.
04:22Banks, telcos, even government agencies are turning to chatbots and automation to get things done.
04:29That doesn't mean everything is disappearing.
04:31In fact, companies are spending more on retraining.
04:35Workers are learning new skills in coding, energy systems, even AI oversight.
04:40But the pace is fast and the stakes are high.
04:44So no, this isn't just about layoffs.
04:48It's about a system-wide adjustment.
04:50Companies aren't reacting to one crisis.
04:53They're preparing for a very different future.
04:55One with new rules, new tools, and a new kind of workforce.
05:02Natasha Bust, FMT
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