An employment survey has found that about 30 percent of Hong Kong companies are planning to hire more staff in the coming three months, while about 20 percent of them are expected to have personnel cuts.

The survey, conducted by global employment agency ManpowerGroup, took in 525 local employers among the 39,449 surveyed globally in 42 countries and regions.

It also showed that half of the surveyed local firms do not have plans to change their total employee numbers, but notable was a gauge measuring Hong Kong's hiring outlook that was significantly lower than that of the global average.

The Net Employment Outlook (NEO) for the SAR stood at plus 11 percent for the coming quarter, up 0.5 percent from the previous quarter but notably lower compared with the plus 25 percent seen for the global job market.

Speaking in an interview with RTHK, Lancy Chui, ManpowerGroup Greater China's senior vice president, said the local healthcare and life science industries have shown the strongest hiring demand, with its NEO index standing at plus 31 percent.

"The outstanding performance was mainly driven by government-led healthcare reforms and [increased] public health awareness. Smart medical technologies are [also] driving the industry's transformation, creating strong demand for biotechnology researchers, health management specialists and medical technology professionals," she told RTHK.

The human resources veteran also noted that the information and technology (I&T) sector also showed strong interest in hiring, with the industry's NEO gauge standing at plus 27 percent, boosted by rapid developments in the artificial intelligence technology.

"Our global data shows that 48 percent of employers are already using AI tools and another 21 of them are planning to adopt them in the next 12 months. These technologies not only enhance efficiency and productivity but also create a sharp rise in demand for AI professionals, especially data scientists and cyber security experts," she said.

However, Chui warned about the increased challenges facing the logistics industry, as the NEO gauge for the sector stood at minus 25 percent, caused by the global trade frictions and US tariff hikes.

Looking ahead, the firm noted that local firms are "cautiously optimistic" about their salary offerings amid expectations that pay rises for staff will only be around three percent for this year, 0.3 percentage points lower compared with last year.

While professionals in the tech and healthcare sectors could get a handsome pay rise, the construction, retail, and catering sectors could face a slower wage growth.

Workers who switch jobs could get a pay rise between 10 to 15 percent, but about one fifth of surveyed employers noted they might consider pay freezes or pay cuts.

The city's jobless rate, meanwhile, is expected to stay in a range of about 3.1 to 3.3 percent, Chui added.