Uncertainty in Europe continues to drag on hiring confidence both regionally and worldwide; positive signals seen in the U.S., Japan and India while Chinese job prospects continue to cool.

According to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey of global hiring trends for the first quarter of 2012, the first-quarter hiring pace is expected to slow from three months ago in 30 of the 41 countries and territories that participate in the survey. However, forecasts remain positive in 31 of 41 countries, with results from the U.S., Japan and India revealing some positive signals, while employer optimism in China declines considerably from this time last year. Other findings include:

• Hiring plans are strongest in India, Brazil and Taiwan and weakest in Greece, Hungary and Italy. Employer hiring confidence in China declines for the fifth consecutive quarter and is considerably weaker from this time last year.
   
• Across the Asia Pacific region, job prospects remain solid, but employers in six of eight countries and territories expect to ease hiring form three months ago - particularly in Singapore where the Outlook drops by considerable margins from both last quarter and last year at this time.
   
• In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), employer confidence remains mixed with positive hiring activity anticipated in only 13 of the 23 countries surveyed. Employer hiring plans weaken by varying degrees in six of the eight countries surveyed in Eastern Europe.
   
• In the Americas, employers in Brazil report the most optimistic hiring intentions for the quarter ahead. In contrast, U.S. employers expect to continue a more modest hiring pace with Outlooks improving slightly or remaining stable in nine of 13 sectors from both last year and three months ago.

The global leader in innovative workforce solutions, ManpowerGroup releases the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey quarterly to measure employers' intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next quarter. It is the longest running, most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world, polling nearly 65,000 employers in 41 countries and territories. The survey serves as a bellwether of labor market trends and activities and is regularly used to inform the Bank of England's Inflation Reports, as well as a regular data source for the European Commission, informing its EU Employment Situation and Social Outlook report the Monthly Monitor. ManpowerGroup's independent survey data is also sourced by financial analysts and economists around the world to help determine where labor markets are headed.

To view full survey results for each of the 41 countries and territories included in the survey, plus regional and global comparisons, visit the ManpowerGroup Web site at:

http://www.manpowergroup.com/meos