City to set the pace in taking on new staff

JOB-HUNTING Londoners face better prospects over the summer as the City spearheads a recruitment drive by firms in the capital.

Shrugging off mounting concerns about the economic outlook, a report from recruitment specialist Manpower shows a net 10% of firms intend to increase headcount in the next three months, up from 5% in March.

Although the struggling retail sector has become much more cautious about hiring, the finance and business services sector is more upbeat about taking on staff than at any time in the past seven years.

Mat Jackson, group business manager for Manpower in London, said: 'Much of London's growth is fuelled by the City. The predicted uplift here will lift confidence elsewhere in the capital as well.

'We're also seeing an uplift in public sector recruitment following the election and we expect this to continue over the period.'

The findings chime with a recent report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research that predicted City jobs would be back to dot-com boom levels next year. Some 4500 City jobs will be created, taking the total to 325,500.

Nationally, eight of the nine sectors surveyed by Manpower plan to take on staff in the next three months, the exception being agriculture.

Manpower managing director Mark Cahill said: 'The UK employment market has been well known for its resilience and stability and this picture looks set to continue.'