KPMG/REC jobs report reveals positive news for the UK jobs market

According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG Report on Jobs, there is some good news for the UK jobs market .

The index for firms’ hiring of permanent workers rose from 46.1 in July to 50.6 in August - tipping over the 50 mark which indicates growth.

The report shows that for the first time in 17 months, permanent job appointments have risen.

Meanwhile, for temporary staff, the index rose from 45.1 in July to 50.3 - the highest level since July last year.

Commenting on the figures, Bernard Brown, head of business services at KPMG, said: “This is the first time we have seen really positive news for the UK jobs market in 17 months. However, it is too early to speculate whether this signals the end of the recession.”

The latest official figures show that unemployment increased by 220,000 to 2,435,000 in the three months to June, and takes the unemployment rate to 7.8%. The figures equate to around 2,500 losing their jobs a day.

In other news today, the latest Nationwide Consumer Confidence index suggests that the worst of the recession is over after its index rose from 61 in July to 63 in August - the highest reading since May 2008.

According to the Nationwide, all of its measures of confidence rose during August with consumers feeling more positive about the current situation for the first time since April.

Only a fifth (21%) of people think the economy will be worse in six months, much lower than the 53% recorded at the beginning of 2009.

Meanwhile, around one third of people think the economy will better in six months time - the highest level since the Nationwide started collecting data in 2004.

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