Cautious optimism is once again the phrase of the day.
June 26, 2012
English: The City of London skyline as viewed toward the north-west from the top floor viewing platform of London City Hall on the southern side of the Thames. In the foreground: Dixie Queen and Millennium Time at Tower Millennium Pier. This is a 5 segment panoramic image taken by myself with a Canon 5D and 24-105mm f/4L IS lens. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
While the ongoing problems in the eurozone and the Government’s failure to provide a boost to employment opportunities in the financial services sector continue to provide plenty of food for thought there was a surprise boost for the industry at the start of this month.
International recruitment firm Astbury Marsden revealed figures which showed the number of City jobs created had hit a nine-month high in May.
In all, 4,320 jobs were created – an incredible 25 per cent jump from April’s figures and the highest levels seen since August 2011.
Although still significantly down (by 35 per cent) on the same time year – the result of the eurozone crises – the figures seem to represent increasing confidence.
It is reflective of a wider trend in the capital, as seen in the most recent employment figures from the Office for National Statistics.
These revealed that unemployment in London fell by 20,000 in the three months to April, although 413,000 people remain out of work in the region.
Throughout the UK unemployment has also fallen – by 51,000 between February and April.
Kevin Green, the chief executive of The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) was quick to stress that growth is slowing down and that ‘ultimately things are likely to get worse before we see them get consistently better’.
But his own organisation, in a survey produced in conjunction with KPMG, did find that there had been a modest nationwide rise in permanent staff placements in May.
And yet another study – this time by Morgan McKinley – showed London’s financial sector boosted the number of jobs available in May by 17 per cent compared to April.
On Friday, we saw political leaders from Germany, Italy, France and Spain agree in principle to a £104billion package of measures aimed at reviving economic growth across Europe.
Whether this has the effect of stabilising the Euro or not remains to be seen, but if these pro-growth measures do succeed then maybe we have more to look forward to than we think.
After all, if London’s financial services can achieve a 25 per cent jobs leap at a time of crises think what could be done in the right conditions.
