Singapore takes the crown for offering highest average annual salary in Asia

SINGAPORE: When it comes to the highest yearly salaries in Asia, Singapore is ranked number one, according to finance website Insider Monkey.

The Little Red Dot has edged out other wealthy nations in the region, including the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

A quick web search shows that the average salary for a full-time employee in Singapore is S$5,783 per month or S$69,396 annually, although other sites quote it a little more conservatively at S$5,197 (or $62,364 per year).

Insider Monkey, however, writes, “While Singapore is generally known for high salaries, in 2023, the country saw a downturn in tech salaries, yet specific roles witnessed major wage hikes.

For example, data scientists saw an 11.3 per cent increase, followed by systems analysts at 8.27 per cent, cybersecurity engineers at 8.24 per cent, and quality assurance professionals at 8.01 per cent.

Nodeflair’s report, which analyzed over 422,000 data points, attributed the increase in data scientist compensation to a growing interest in generative AI.

The report also linked the rise in cybersecurity engineer salaries to increased cyber threats in the Asia-Pacific region.”

Instarem listed the top five industries with the highest average annual salaries in Singapore, which are: Software Engineering, S$63,000; Healthcare, S$63,003; Information Technology, S$60,432; Administration & Human Resources, S$60,000; and Banking and Finance, S$57,543.

Coming in second place in the list of highest annual salaries in Asia is the United Arab Emirates, where the average is S$69,282.

Insider Monkey calls the job market growth in the UAE “prodigious,” noting that the country’s 4 per cent increase in average salaries outpaces the 2.3 per cent rise in inflation.

A number of sectors in the country are due to see significant salary upticks, including energy and consumer goods companies, which expect to see hikes of 4.3 per cent and 4.1 per cent, respectively, and the life sciences and high-tech sectors, both of which expect to see a 4 per cent salary bump.

“Despite the escalating cost of living, driven mainly by high rent prices, the UAE remains an attractive destination for opportunities in high-demand fields,” the piece adds.

Coming in at number three is Qatar, where the average annual salary is S$68,872, followed by Kuwait (S$67,205) and Taiwan (S$65,402) in fourth and fifth places respectively.

Hong Kong (S$63,561), Japan (S$60,921), Israel (S$57,265), Oman (S$55,986), and South Korea (S$52,203), respectively, round out the top ten.

Check out Insider Monkey‘s list of the top 15 countries in Adua with the highest annual salaries here. /TISG

Read also: SG salary report 2024: Tech’s largest pay growth seen for data scientists

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