IT contractors have been warned that there is a real possibility of zero per cent growth in the global IT market in 2011.

According to information and research analysts Gartner, technology providers have been told to prepare business plans in anticipation of 3.5 per cent growth in the sector.

However, with the global economic situation still fragile, they must also provide contingencies for the possibility of zero per cent growth.

Any such reduction in global IT spending will naturally have an adverse knock-on effect on the number of job vacancies created for IT contractors.

"The bottom line is that technology providers need to be prepared for the worst case, where commercial IT markets stagnate and governments transition to fiscal austerity programs," said Kenneth Brant, research director at Gartner.

However, IT services company Quantix recently revealed that demand for cloud computing continues to rise, helping the company achieve four per cent growth.