November saw the creation of 2,760 City jobs, down 16% from the 3,160 in October, according to financial services recruiter Astbury Marsden.

The number of qualified staff for each vacancy at the moment (5) is at its highest level since December 2008, having risen from just 1.7 at the start of 2011.

Mark Cameron, chief operating officer at Astbury Marsden, says: “Those few institutions or departments looking to hire…should be able to pick a higher calibre of candidate from a wider pool.”

Cameron adds that the festive period is traditionally slow, saying: “The City is very much in ’wait and see’ mode. Banks and fund managers are still trying to salvage what they can, in terms of profitability, from the last quarter of this year.

“The relative strength of the jobs market in Asian banking centres such as Hong Kong and Singapore means we are still seeing steady demands from there for London-based bankers but even that demand is noticeably smaller numbers than a year ago.”