Vacancies across Wales have continued to rise, with 2022 levels set to be 196% higher than the 2018-2020 three-year average. That’s according to new research from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo), the trade association for the professional recruitment sector.

According to the data, provided by business intelligence specialist Vacancysoft, recruitment levels across the country reached a significant milestone in January of this year, with new jobs up 88.2% when compared to the same month a year earlier.

Across the sectors, real estate has seen the greatest uptick in recruitment, with jobs in the sector surging 184% year-on-year in 2021. This is indicative of the unprecedented levels of interest in the Welsh housing market which has put increasing pressure on resources across real estate.

The statistics also showed that IT experts were in highest demand across Wales, with recruitment for these specialists remaining steady throughout the pandemic, accounting for 16.3% of all new vacancies across the country last year. Meanwhile, jobs in engineering reported the greatest spike in numbers last year, with recruitment up 275.9% year-on-year.

Ann Swain, CEO of APSCo comments: “Despite Omicron threatening the UK’s economic recovery, Wales began 2022 with record-breaking recruitment levels, however, while the professional sectors are currently holding up well, skills shortages are evident across almost every specialism. The data suggests that recruitment demand will only continue to grow across Wales for the rest of this year and with experts such as IT professionals in high demand, but short supply, businesses will find sourcing the best talent becomes increasingly difficult.”