Only 1,500 financial services jobs were created in London in December, down 43 per cent from 2,600 a year earlier, according to Astbury Marsden.

The UK recruiter also said that the total number of new City jobs in 2011 fell 8 per cent to roughly 54,000 from 58,800 in 2010.  

The research was based on the job market in London's financial industry as a whole, where investment banking makes up the lion’s share but wealth management and private banking jobs are also included.

“After starting the year on something of a hiring high, 2011 finished on a low note with a marked slump in the number of new City jobs created,” said Mark Cameron, chief operating officer at Astbury Marsden.

“Although there were well over 50,000 new City jobs created last year many of them were replacements for staff leaving for other jobs rather than brand new roles,” Cameron said.

The downturn means that there were three qualified candidates for each role in 2011, compared with two in 2010, according to the company.

Astbury Marsden does not expect a swift turnaround at the start of this year: “At the moment the eurozone crisis hangs over everything like a cloud and until the political solution is seen as delivered we expect City hiring to remain moderate,” Cameron said.