KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 — More Malaysians are set to be jobless while inflation will likely rise for this year as the country grapples with slower global growth, a weak ringgit and the continued crude oil price slump, the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (Mier) said today.

The state think tank predicted joblessness to increase to 3.3 per cent in 2016, a 0.2 per cent rise from last year, while inflation is expected to climb at the same margin to 2.3 per cent from 2.1 per cent in 2015.

“We expect unemployment to rise and inflation as well. But not too much. It’s still quite stable,” the agency’s director Datuk Dr Zakariah Abdul Rashid told a media briefing at Mier’s office here.

The think tank also said its survey found more than 49 per cent of Malaysians felt hiring would falter in the last quarter of 2015. Only 16 per cent felt optimistic.

On inflation, Zakariah said the increase may not have much of an impact and will remain controlled throughout the year supported largely by lower energy costs and low global inflation environment.

Mier also said the depreciation of the ringgit was not being fully passed down to consumers.

Zakariah said the ringgit is expected to hover around the RM4.20 to RM4.30 mark against the US dollar throughout 2016.

A survey released yesterday by an international Internet hiring firm, which cited a weakening economy, showed that local businesses slashed new online recruitments by 33 per cent in 2015 versus the year before.

Monster Worldwide’s Online Employment Index 2015 also found that no sector in the country was unscathed from the spreading economic slowdown. Previously high-growth industries such as manufacturing, retail, and real estate all made cut backs on Internet hires.

The manufacturing industry reduced hiring by 9 per cent year-on-year while retailers made do with 28 per cent fewer new workers; the advertising and marketing sector also reduced recruitment by 19 per cent and real estate/engineering had 28 per cent fewer vacancies.

Mier said consumer sentiment hits a new low in the last quarter of 2015 as the economic uncertainties prompted Malaysians to tighten spending.

Its consumer sentiment index retreated by 6.4 points from Q3 and by a significant 19.2 points year-on-year, falling for the sixth consecutive quarter to a new record low of 63.8 in the last quarter of 2015.

“Not only were households unfavourable in their assessment of current conditions, they were even more negative in their financial and job outlook for the first half of 2016,” the think tank said in its report.

“So until they see their present situation turning a corner, consumers are unlikely to splurge on a new house, car or any big-ticket item that means adding on more debt,” it added.

Mier forecasted this year’s private consumption to drop by 0.4 per cent to 6.4 from 6.8 last year.