Commodities traders in Asia who were suddenly and unexpectedly made redundant from Nomura last week should soon by snapped up by other banks.

The firm says global job losses from its commodities team are in the “low double digits” – it does not breakdown the figures regionally. But even this handful of layoffs comes as a shock because until recently Nomura has been expanding in commodities and other firms are still hiring in Asia, particularly in Singapore.

Nomura’s Asian commodities operation performed well last year. In a mid-2010 memo, the bank said it had a “targeted strategy” in the sector and had attained “60 people in commodities across EMEA and Asia Pacific”.

As we reported in January, Société Générale, Goldman Sachs, Citi, Macquarie, Standard Chartered and Deutsche Bank have all recently been hiring in Singapore, Asia’s commodities hub.

Former Nomura staff should therefore be in demand. “If they are competent, accepting of their new status, and of local packages being all the rage, finding work should be no more difficult than had they been actively looking to move,” says Dominic Mound, consultant, Commodity Appointments.

Mound believes the Nomura redundancies are isolated and don’t point to a wider downward trend in the commodities job market

Another headhunter, who asked not to be named, says the bank’s decision is out of character. “Normally Japanese banks tend to take a long-term view on things and give them a few years to work out. This suggests otherwise. It looks like there’s been a sudden change of heart.”