A third of City bonuses are up on last year, and almost 75% of City workers questioned said their end of year bonus was set to exceed expectations, found a recent survey by Morgan McKinley. This indicates that there may in fact be more capital around to be spent on houses, restaurants and other businesses on in the coming months by those on the receiving end.

Around £7bn is set to be given in bonuses between now and April, the second best on record, according to the report.

Robert Thesiger, chief executive of Morgan McKinley said: ‘Following on from a record bonus round in 2006-7, speculation surrounding this year’s bonuses was enormous, particularly given the significant year. However, putting the impact of the credit crunch aside, 2007 was still a strong year for financial services and, for the majority, bonus payouts in middle and back office functions appear to reflect this.’

City bonuses are widely thought to influence the property market, particularly in London and the South East of England, and agents will be hoping that some of their annual windfall is investing into bricks and mortar.