There was a sharper drop in permanent placements in January, following the trend this has been on since October 2022, revealed the monthly KPMG and REC UK job report.

Permanent staff hires also took a hit with the Midlands falling to the lowest figure, but there were decreases across all regions.

However, the temporary workers index held strong, dropping by 0.1% for the UK overall, with London and the Midlands improving slightly.

Skills shortages remained an issue for many sectors across permanent and temporary staff with the accounting sector affected across multiple positions as firms struggled to hire people with the right mix of qualifications and skills.