The Spanish economy’s slow recovery in the first half of 2010 was halted during May as a result of the approval of the government’s wide ranging budget activity programme. With structural investment frozen and a general lack of confidence within the private sector, recruitment activity reduced significantly.
However, we did see pockets of hiring taking place. We witnessed strong demand for qualified business and support managers across the healthcare, food and beverage and manufacturing sectors. Many financial services firms reinforced their sales teams, particularly within wealth management, M&A and asset management. The IT and telecommunications sectors also provided some opportunities as demand for internet-based services increased.
Following seven consecutive quarters of decline, GDP did stabilise somewhat in quarter four – which was an encouraging sign for the recruitment market. We anticipate economic activity to continue to improve in 2011, albeit slowly, and recruitment levels to subsequently increase.