After massive reductions in personnel last year and this, there is a glimmer of good job news in the financial sector. Between February and May of this year, layoffs appear to have bottomed out, and employment cuts from January through October have dropped 62% compared to the year-ago period, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an executive outplacement service.

What’s more, the purse strings are clearly loosening. Bonuses at investment banks are expected to increase by an average of 40% from 2008 levels, according to Johnson Associates, a compensation consulting firm, and some firms have already started hiring. Last month, the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick, announced that the company was planning a “hiring binge” that could range between 200 and 400 new jobs. Citigroup, though it is reducing headcount in some areas, is bulking up in others, such as mortgage modification in the U.S. and capital market desks around the globe. “We’re looking to hire the best financial advisors for our private wealth management,” says spokesman Alex Samuelson...Keep Reading.