Active openings slide to 93,000 amid global uncertainty and weaker IT demand
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MUMBAI: The hiring engine seems to have hit a software update of its own, only this one came with a pause button. India’s technology job market cooled sharply in June 2026, with active hiring demand falling to its lowest level in 28 months, as global uncertainty and cautious corporate spending weighed heavily on recruitment plans. According to Xpheno’s Active Tech Jobs Outlook – India report, the country recorded around 93,000 active technology job openings in June, representing a 14 per cent month-on-month decline and a 17 per cent year-on-year drop, the steepest annual contraction seen in recent periods.
The slump has effectively pushed hiring demand back to levels last witnessed in January 2024, underlining the depth of the slowdown across India’s technology sector.
Xpheno, co-founder Kamal Karanth attributed the downturn largely to uncertainty in the US market, a critical demand engine for India’s IT industry. Shifting enterprise priorities, tighter hiring budgets and broader macroeconomic pressures have collectively forced companies to tread more cautiously when it comes to talent acquisition.
The report also flagged concerns around global tech talent mobility. With uncertainty surrounding H-1B visa holders in the United States, return migration to India could rise, potentially adding further pressure to an already soft domestic job market.
A closer look at hiring patterns reveals weakness across categories. Full-time roles remained dominant at 68,000 openings, but still registered a 15 per cent month-on-month decline. Contract and flexible roles also softened, while internship and part-time opportunities remained relatively stable.
Experience levels told a similar story. Mid-senior professionals continued to account for nearly half of all openings, but demand in the segment also fell by double digits. Entry-level hiring took the biggest hit, plunging 23 per cent month-on-month and 44 per cent year-on-year, signalling a sharp reduction in fresh talent intake across companies.
Sector-wise, IT services remained the largest hiring contributor with 36,000 openings, but recorded a 16 per cent monthly decline and a significant 31 per cent annual drop. Software product firms and Global Capability Centres (GCCs) showed comparatively steadier demand, although both continued to trend downward. Start-ups and consulting firms faced even sharper contractions.
The country’s biggest technology hubs Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune and Chennai continued to account for the lion’s share of openings. Yet even these recruitment strongholds experienced broad-based declines. In a rare bright spot, Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities posted year-on-year growth, suggesting that technology hiring is gradually becoming more geographically distributed despite the broader slowdown.
The report also noted that work-from-office roles continue to dominate hiring mandates, while demand for remote and hybrid positions remained mixed amid the overall contraction.
For now, India’s tech hiring landscape appears to be running on a lower battery mode. The jobs haven’t disappeared, but companies seem increasingly inclined to conserve energy until the global economic outlook becomes clearer.
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