Jobs in 2025 — which sectors gained in India and which sectors lost

Kolkata: Both for the individual and policymakers, the job market in one of the main trends that is always in focus in any economy as a year draws to an end. It indicates significant trends in the job market which is so important in any developing economy like India, where employment generation remains in focus of the government to push GDP growth. The higher the employment generation, the bigger the consumption and the bigger the possibility of GDP growth.

One of the indicators was provided by the India Skills Report 2025. One of the transformative trends of this year is the fast technology adoption across the world and the resultant changes. India has emerged as the reservoir of skills which can take advantage of such trends. Technology, healthcare, fintech, renewable energy and e-commerce are the sectors that emerged as prominent ones in the employment landscapes in India and various parts of the world such as Southeast Asia Europe. Green tech, digital economies and innovation emerged a the trends that shaped the job market in 2025.

However, one of the salient points this year has been marked the job marked this year has been the protectionist policy of US President Donald Trump that seriously come to discourage entry of non-American professionals to the largest economy in the world. The fee for H-1B visa was hiked to a prohibitive $1 lakh dollars and it impacted a lot of Indian professionals to gain entry to the US mainland for jobs. However, there has been reports of major US banks such as JP Morgan employing more Indian professionals through the GCCs or Global Capability Centres based in India.

GCCs have immense potential for generating employment -- about 28 lakh to 40 lakh by FY30. The domains that can benefit from the growth of GCCs are AI, cloud, and data engineering. MNCs based on Wall Street are utilising GCCs to work around the tightening visa policies and immigration policies in the US. JP Morgan Chase is hiring credit support specialists in Bengaluru while Goldman Sachs Group is also looking for associates to review loans. Reports also indicate that private equity giant KKR & Co is also hiring professionals. So is hedge fund Millennium Management LLC, which is looking for professionals for derivative trading.

Engineers in the renewable energy sector, environmental data analysis, energy efficiency, clean energy project manager, sustainable design architect, carbon footprint analysis, circular economy etc are domains that are showing demand for professionals. Also the technology and IT sector continues to witness new absorption of professionals. Though there has been tardy overall growth in the IT and software sector, AI and digital transformation are in the demand for professionals not only in India but also n other regions such as South Africa, Australia, Southeast Asia and Middle East and North Africa.

Skills in Al engineering, machine learning, data science, cloud computing, and cybersecurity are in demand. In the next rung are skills in software development, DevOps, full-stack development, robotics engineering, blockchain development, lot expertise and automation that are in demand.

Two sectors have witnessed growth in 2025. These are e-commerce and digital marketing. The roles that have witnessed a rise are e-commerce manager, social media manager, content creator, affiliate marketing manager, SEO/SEM specialist, digital marketing strategist, conversion rate optimisation (CRO) specialist, customer success manager etc. These roles have grown not only in India but also in Southeast Asia, Europe and Middle East and North Africa. There are distinct triggers to the rising momentum of these sectors such as expanding smartphone penetration, growth in digital public infrastructure and changing consumer spending patterns.

Healthcare and biotechnology are two domains that are witnessing growth. The most discernable trends are visible in European nations such as Germany, France, the UK and other regions such as Australia, South Africa and Southeast Asia. Some of skills that are reportedly in demand are healthcare data analyst, medical researcher, clinical data scientist, biotech engineer, pharmaceutical specialist, healthcare IT specialist, EHR specialist, health tech innovator, genomics specialist, public health analyst etc.

The banking sector in India is in the pink of health. The fintech sector is expanding aggressively. India is expanding in digital payments (in which it is the global leader). Also professionals in blockchain technology and mobile financial services are in demand in India. Roles of financial analysts, fintech specialists, blockchain analysts are in demand. Similarly cryptocurrency consultants, investment bankers and wealth management advisors are in demand.

The big job shrinkage in 2025 happened due to the onslaught of AI. According to layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi,as many as 150,000 job cuts took place in 549 companies. In 2025, as many as 16,084 job cuts took place in February of this year and 18,510 employees were laid off in October and the number progressed steadily as more and more companies continue to utilise and deploy AI in their operations. Some of the companies that were ion the news for laying off employees included big names such as Apple and HP. Other big names include Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Google, Intel, UPS, Starbucks, Verizon and Ford. The reasons were almost always embracing AI and the need to streamline operations.

While jobs in India were not yet lost directly to AI in big numbers, some tech jobs were lost in soem companies such as TCS -- the country's largest IT firm -- which is undergoing adjustments in order to reorganise its skill pool to cater to demands of clients who are gradually ahifting to AI