Brexit uncertainties and other factors are weighing on London's jobs market.

Uncertainties about how the UK quits the European Union or leaves it at all continue to weigh on the London financial jobs market, with available jobs shrinking by 7 per cent in October from the previous month, and sinking by 33 per cent compared with the previous year.

Traditionally, this part of autumn is a period when firms decelerate hiring until the New Year begins, suggesting no immediate uptick in vacancies is likely, according to New Year, the executive search firm. 

With the UK departing the EU by March – and a risk that the country leaves without a free trade agreement in place covering financial services – the timetable is causing serious hiring difficulty, the firm said.

“Brexit’s grip on jobs feels permanent, but one way or the other, the fever will break in the coming months”, Hakan Enver, managing director, Morgan McKinley Financial Services, said. “The question now is how deep a hole will we have to climb our way out of come March?”

The report said that there was a 26 per cent increase in professionals seeking jobs, month-on-month; the number of professionals seeking jobs fell by 23 per cent from a year ago, however.

“Businesses are holding their cards close to their chests, prepared to hold off on announcements until the very last minute, and that’s worrying their staff”, said Enver. “Professionals who want to stay in London, but are concerned about their roles being transferred overseas, are leveraging the shrinking window of time to try and secure a job locally. This is shown in the 26 per cent increase in professionals seeking jobs compared to the prior month”, Enver added.

The study adds to hiring nervousness as shown by October’s release on financial services by the Confederation of British Industry, showing that four out of five firms surveyed said that Brexit had hit investment plans.

However, Brexit is not the only culprit for the tougher jobs climate. The spectre of trade wars in multiple regions, paired with a political climate that rewards antagonism over collaboration and the promise of rising interest rates, are all adding to a climate of confusion that is affecting the hiring market. "We live in uncertain times and uncertainty has never been good for business", said Enver. Other forces are affecting job markets, Morgan McKinley said. Financial services firms are changing how they recruit staff. PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG, two of the Big Four accountancy firms, have announced that they will no longer accept all-male job shortlists, to ensure more pathways for women into the sector.

The extent to which Brexit is affecting the London jobs market, including those in the wealth sector, remains disputed. So far, several thousand jobs have been moved to EU member states, but the threat that tens of thousands or more jobs would relocate appears for the time being not to have materialised. Arguably, a far greater disruption to financial centres - not just London - comes from developments such as Artificial Intelligence and distributed ledger technologies such as blockchain.