White collar recruiter PageGroup PLC (LON:PAGE) said the jobs market in the UK remained tough in the first half of the year.
The company, formerly known as Michael Page, said that while it saw a good performance in continental Europe and, excluding Brazil, in Latin America, the going was harder back in Blighty; the Greater China and Brazilian markets also proved a challenge.
Profit before tax in the first half of 2016 rose 16% to £46.9mln from £40.4mln the year before, helped in part by sterling’s collapse following the EU referendum vote.
Revenue climbed 8.6%, or 5.5% on a constant exchange rate basis, to £575.9mln from £530.4mln the year before.
The interim dividend has been nudged up to 3.75p from 3.6p and, as it did last year at this stage, the company has declared a special dividend, though at 6.46p it is not as generous as last year’s 16p pay-out.
"We are pleased with our first half performance, but remain mindful of ongoing macro-economic uncertainty in the UK and elsewhere as we start the second half of the year; however, we will continue to focus on driving profitable growth, as we did in the first half, whilst remaining able to respond quickly to any changes in market conditions," said Steve Ingham, chief executive officer.
The shares were down 1.2% at 346.3p after just over an hour of trading.