Job vacancies rose along with salaries in February, according to the Reed Job Index.

The index figure was 105 for the month, up one point on January and five points on December last year.

Applications per job averaged 19 in February, 50% higher than last year, while employer demand increased most for graduates and HR professionals, while increases were also recorded across private and not-for-profit sectors for accountants, financial services, IT, charity and voluntary, and administration staff.
 
Meanwhile, the Reed Public Sector Job Index fell to 75, the lowest level of any sector.
 
Salaries for new jobs increased 5% on average, while the national average salary for new permanent online jobs was £34,215.

Martin Warnes, managing director of reed.co.uk, says: “Employer demand is slowly but steadily returning to the jobs marketplace, as the number of new job opportunities on offer continue to rise.
 
“Most striking, however, is just how many more people are actively jobseeking now than at any time over the last couple of years. Pent up demand from people who felt trapped in their jobs throughout the recession seems to have been released with the first signs of returning confidence.   

“Employed applicants have flooded back into the job marketplace since the beginning of the year, and are now actively competing with unemployed people, new entrants, graduates and returners.