Increase in IPOs fuels 7% growth in City jobs

A marked increase in stock market flotations, as well as perceptions of better trading prospects for banks and other financial services companies, has produced a big jump in new City jobs, a leading recruitment consultant will say today.

Astbury Marsden said 6,650 new jobs were created in the City during May – a 7 per cent increase on April, and the highest figure for 18 months. However, the recruitment consultant warned that an improvement in sentiment had also encouraged many more City workers to look for new opportunities – it said 10,870 of them are currently involved in an active search for a new job, the highest figure for six months.

Still, Astbury Marsden's chief operating officer, Mark Cameron, said the increase in the number of new jobs on offer was to be welcomed, particularly since the holiday disruption seen in April had threatened to derail growth in the City's employment market.

"City bankers will be very encouraged to see that the market has bounced back from the Royal Wedding slow down to reach an eighteen month high – it is healthy, not explosive growth, as some of May's new jobs would have been created in April," he said. "The Royal Wedding put a dampener on the usual City hiring pattern of a very active spring. The abnormal number of public holidays definitely slowed hiring decisions."

One particular stimulus for jobs has been the pick-up in initial public offerings, with investment banking revenues from London flotations up by 24 per cent so far this year according to Dealogic, the market intelligence company.

Large IPOs such as Glencore have buoyed the market, while London-based bankers have also begun to benefit from the excitement around technology companies coming to market such as LinkedIn and Groupon in the US.

"Jumbo IPOs like Glencore and LinkedIn create a huge amount of extra work in all financial centres, not just in the city that is listing that company," Mr Cameron said.

"Global roadshows, multiple banks acting as bookrunners, the huge levels of due diligence needed – all of this increases demand for City staff," he added.