IT job vacancies in the North West have dropped by 45 per cent, a new survey has showed. According to the UK Quarterly Regional IT Skills Index from Salary Survey Publications Ltd and CW jobs, IT vacancies in the North West showed the worst performance for several quarters, with a drop of 45 per cent between April and June 2002.

The North East, the Midlands and the West and Wales all saw quarterly falls of more than 30 per cent in job vacancies.

But the research showed that the IT economy remains strongest in Greater London and the South East; as these two regions accounted for 65 per cent of all IT job vacancies in the quarter.

Overall the report showed the number of IT job vacancies in the UK fell by 28 per cent for the quarter compared to January to March 2002, the lowest fall for several successive quarters, suggesting that overall the rate of decline in the UK IT jobs markets is slowing down.