Dismiss ideas of a recession if you like, but fears of a downturn are wreaking havoc not just in the markets but in British boardrooms too.
A small group of top executives have unwittingly become the hottest property in town as companies scramble to hire them in case of turbulence.
The mergence of the so called "Super-Gs" – which include Reuters’ Tom Glocer and Niall FitzGerald and BA director Denise Kingsmill – has been identified by several City headhunters.
Meanwhile the rest – or Gs – are just as well known but suddenly not in demand any more.
Moloney Search, which places many leading board executives, decided to do more research and found a new and ruthless division was being made by nomination committees across the land.
Curly Moloney of Moloney Search told Prufrock: "A cadre of professionals are beginning to rule the world…meanwhile good candidates are becoming increasingly demoralised as they are pushed to the sidelines."
Moloney found that the Super-Gs all have long-standing FTSE experience, an MBA, usually from Wharton or Stanford, and had better experience of technology than everyone else.
Another headhunter said: "There’s been a shift in the past few months – nomination committees want security not risk. Forget being a young gun trying to break through, some of the best names out there are being shunned for a small blot on their performance track records."
It certainly makes filling spots harder. Perhaps this is the explanation for the lack of a new chief executive at William Hill.