PageGroup PLC (LSE:PAGE) shrugged off a profit slump and slowdown in white-collar recruitment to announce a £50 million special dividend with its interim results.
The recruiter, which also cut its own headcount by 5%, said that its first-half performance had been robust with revenues at £1.03 billion, up 5.8%, even though profits dropped 44% to £63.3 million.
EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) delivered the standout result, it said, with record gross profit against a particularly strong comparator across the region.
"However, tough market conditions continued in Asia, the UK and the US."
In these areas, lower levels of candidate and client confidence resulted in delays in decision-making and candidates being more reluctant to accept offers, the statement said.
Nicholas Kirk, chief executive, added that even with the uncertainty, PageGroup is still seeing candidate shortages and good levels of vacancies, as well as continued high fee rates.
"We believe we will continue to perform well despite the uncertainty. At this stage of the year, the board expects 2023 operating profit to be in line with our previous guidance."
As well as the special dividend of 15.87p, PageGroup also upped its interim dividend by 4% to 5.13p.
Cash at the end of the half-year was £97.9 million.