News
Rise in job vacancies advertised
23 - 09 - 2013
Increasing business confidence has resulted in a rise of 4% in the number of job vacancies advertised in the UK, according to the new Robert Walters European Job Index comparing the first and second quarters of 2013.
Meanwhile, quarterly growth in job advertisements in the rest of Europe has remained broadly flat. Luxembourg was the only other country that recorded an increase (7%) in the number of job advertisements. This increase was attributed to mounting regulatory demands and the need for compliance professionals.
The index shows significant variations recorded in different regions of the UK. Scotland, the North East and the North West experienced the greatest rises in quarterly advertised vacancies.
The sharpest falls in the volume of advertised vacancies were experienced in Switzerland (-10%), Spain (-9%), Ireland (-9%) and Belgium (-9%).
‘Cautious confidence’
Chris Hickey, CEO of Robert Walters UK, Middle East and Africa, says: ‘There was an element of cautious confidence in the market in Q2, particularly evident in London and the South East. Large financial services institutions showed signs of improvement, and people within this sector have been more confident in seeking new opportunities.’
He remarked that there was greater activity within the IT sector as ‘a number of start-ups sought to expand their European footprint’.
‘Outside of the South East, a number of multinational corporations continued to shift their support functions to lower cost regions (Manchester and Birmingham), leading to a demand in these areas for professionals from across a number of sectors,’ he added.
