New Delhi, (IANS) : The hiring activity dipped by eight per cent in October over the same month last year due to the festive season, Naukri Job Speak Index showed on Tuesday.

The index for the month stood at 1,580, recording a decrease of eight per cent in hiring activity over the same period last year, a release said.

“In October, we saw a dip in new jobs due to the impact of the festive season which saw three major festivals falling in October. However, we are confident that this is a temporary phenomenon and in the coming month jobs growth will start improving,” said Infoedge India’s Chief Marketing Officer Sumeet Singh.

The decline in jobs was reflected broadly across locations. Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru saw jobs decline year-on-year by 17 per cent, 35 per cent and six per cent, respectively, in the last month.

Jobs in Hyderabad were flat while Chennai, Pune and Kolkata also saw jobs decline by 39 per cent, 34 per cent and 29 per cent, respectively.

Technology industries — software or software services as well as ITeS or BPOs — saw a year-on-year dip of 11 per cent and eight per cent, respectively, after seeing consistent growth so far in the financial year.

The IT hardware sector also saw jobs decrease by 24 per cent, according to the hiring report.

However, banking and financial services saw jobs increasing year-on-year by six per cent in October, while insurance sector jobs grew by an impressive 21 per cent in the same duration.

Manufacturing- and infrastructure-oriented industries continued to witness very low growth or a decline in jobs, the release said.

Auto and auto ancillary saw a modest two per cent year-on-year increase in jobs, other sectors like construction and engineering, oil and gas, power, industrial products and heavy machinery saw a reduction in jobs.

Hiring activity generally tends to slow down around festivals as recruiters go slow on hiring plans and job seekers also temporarily suspend their job hunt, it added.

Although the report expects job growth in the coming months, it could not have factored in the demonetisation and the likely impact it would have on the economy and job creation.