Businesses took a break from hiring during the Olympics, leading to a significantly slowed professional jobs market in August, according to data from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo).

This also mirrors the findings of London-based recruitment agencies in the KPMG/REC ‘Report on Jobs’ survey.

Although the report notes that some recruiters have “reported a relatively unscathed City jobs market”, year-on-year permanent placement fell 3% and temporary placements rose, albeit by just 4%, compared to a fall of 5% and a rise of 7% last month. Meanwhile, vacancies fells 34% and 15% respectively, both bigger drops than in July.

The best performing temp sector was IT, with a 15% rise in placements, while engineering lead the permanent market with a 10% hike.

APSCo chief executive Ann Swain says: “A bright year so far for the UK engineering sector has fed through to the availability of permanent jobs. Engineering-led manufacturing is looking the best it has in 40 years, improving competitive conditions for industrial companies in the UK.

“This is particularly evident in the UK car manufacturing industry. Predictions for 2012 show a potential trade surplus in the UK car industry for the first time since the 1970s, thanks to investments in state of the art production methods and new models.”