MUMBAI: Indian employers are the most bullish in the world when it comes to hiring plans for the quarter to March 2016, according to the latest edition of the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey which covers 58,000 firms across 42 countries.With about 42% of the 5,065 employers surveyed in the country expecting to add to their staff during the quarter, India has topped the list for the second consecutive quarter.“Job prospects are continuing to improve. Consumer-focused industries led by e-commerce companies are leading the hiring march, and will continue to do so in the next quarter,” AG Rao, group managing director at Manpower-Group India, told ET.Transportation and utilities, public administration, education, wholesale and retail trade are expected to show strong growth and hiring outlook remains high, said Rao. “A majority of the companies across all sectors are hiring, indicating a clear strategy focused on growth,” he said.According to the survey, job gains are expected in all seven sector groupings during the three-month period. While about 48% employers in transportation and utilities are looking to step up hiring from January, the figure is over 45% in finance insurance and real estate; public administration and education; and wholesale and retail trade.Services sector employers are also upbeat, with more than 43% looking to hire in the next quarter, while the figures for mining and construction, and manufacturing are more than 41% and 40% respectively.Employers expect payroll gains in all four regions during the quarter, with the northern region leading the pack with about 55% employers anticipating the most opportunities for jobseekers in the months ahead. Employers in the western region also report bullish hiring prospects, with an outlook of over 42% while the figures in the southern and eastern regions stand at over 37% and 36% respectively.In comparison with October-December 2015, hiring plans have strengthened in four of the seven industry sectors.There is an increase of 6 percentage points in finance, insurance and real estate , while the hiring outlook has seen a 4 percentage point jump in both mining and construction, and public administration and education. Hiring plans are unchanged in manufacturing sector and wholesale and retail trade, and remain relatively stable in the services sector.The outlook has improved in three of the seven sectors year-onyear, with public administration and education sector employers reporting the most significant increase of 8 percentage points.There is a 2 percentage point increase in both mining and construction sector, and transportation and utilities.However, hiring intentions have weakened in wholesale and retail trade, and manufacturing, by 7 and 3 percentage points, respectively.