PERMANENT jobs increased in January for the first time in four months, according to recruitment consultancy data from KPMG, published yesterday.
However, unemployment continued to climb despite the rise in permanent placements, the report showed.
The study’s permanent staff placement index rose from 48.5 in December to 51.2 in January, recording growth in placements for the first time since September.
Any figure above 50 indicates expansion.
Temporary staff billings declined more slowly than in December with an index of 49.4, up from 49.0, while the rate of vacancies growth slowed to a 27-month low of 52.1.
Demand was greatest for engineering and construction staff, with indices of 57.7 for permanent staff and 58 for temporary, and lowest in the hotel and catering industry at 44.8 and 47.5 for permanent and temporary respectively.
