Strong levels of hiring have been sustained in the City of London during the first half of 2007 and healthy amounts of recruitment activity are continuing into the summer holiday period, according to recruitment firm Morgan McKinley.

Strong levels of hiring have been sustained in the City of London during the first half of 2007 and healthy amounts of recruitment activity are continuing into the summer holiday period, according to recruitment firm Morgan McKinley.

Vacancies rose by six percent in July compared to the previous month. However, the encouraging figures may prove to be misleading in the long run.

Robert Thesiger, COO Europe of Morgan McKinley’s parent company Imprint, comments: ‘It is imperative to point out that recruitment in the City remains at an exceptionally high level and the appetite to hire among the investment banks is still very much there.

‘On the flip side, we will have to wait until August figures are released to see whether recent stock market volatility will have had any immediate impact on City hiring figures this month, although typically it is one of the quietest times in the recruitment calendar anyway.’

Banks tend to use the summer period to review activity from the first half of the year and prepare for the launch of new hiring campaigns in September, says Morgan McKinley.

The research also found that skills shortages within the financial services market continue to be a key issue despite 19 per cent more candidates looking for jobs in July than the same month last year. The average basic salary has remained steady at £51,000, but guaranteed bonuses are becoming more prevalent as firms tempt individuals to move before end of year bonus payouts.

Thesiger adds, however, that ‘individuals’ current employers are counteracting this measure by offering their own “guarantees” to key staff in order to retain them’.