IT contractors will be pleased to hear that the number of job placements made during June continue the month-on-month rise.

However, according to the Report on Jobs from KMPG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), the rate at which the number of placements is rising has slowed again.

Growth for temporary bills has now hit a seven-month low and remains below that seen by those seeking permanent placements.

In addition, the report finds that the availability of temporary staff has risen, meaning that there is more competition for available posts.

There was also stark warning from KMPG partner and head of business services Bernard Brown.

"It can now be only a matter of time before we will start to see the impact of the government's efficiency savings strategy which is likely to leave hundreds of thousands of public sector workers looking for employment," he said.

Contractor Eye recently warned that these public sector cuts have reduced the bargaining power held by IT contractors.