Data from jobs site CV-Library reveals vacancies, salaries applications were all up compared to the last quarter of 2017 – but applications were  down 6.2% against Q1 last year. Tony McDonough reports

A leading UK jobs site is reporting a rise in job vacancies, salary levels and applications  in Liverpool in the first quarter of 2018.

A new study by CV-Library using figures from its own database reveals the number of job vacancies in the city in January, February and March was 17% than in the final three months of last year.

It also revealed the number of applications was up by 30.5%, the fifth highest out of the UK’s biggest cities – beaten by Edinburgh, Manchester, Aberdeen and Birmingham and salaries were also up 6.2% from the previous quarter.

The comparison with the same quarter in 2017 was mixed, but still mainly positive. Vacancies were up 10.6% and salaries by 1.1%. Applications saw a year-on-year decline of 6.4%.

Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library, said: “It’s great to see that the job market in Liverpool has performed so well in the first quarter, with businesses in the city remaining resilient as we move through 2018.

“And it’s clear that this confidence is catching on, with candidate appetite picking back up and job hunters remaining active across Liverpool.”

However, he added: “It’s concerning to learn that application rates were down year-on-year, suggesting that candidates in Liverpool aren’t feeling as confident as they were this time a year ago.

“That said, it’s positive that salaries saw an increase on the last quarter and this could be a big contributing factor towards the rise in application rates when compared with Q4.”