British recruiters signal recovery in hiring as economies exit lockdowns
Reuters
Published Jul 07, 2021 02:47AM ET
Updated Jul 07, 2021 04:50AM ET
(Reuters) -British recruiters PageGroup and Robert Walters raised their annual profit forecasts on Wednesday on increased hiring across their biggest markets last month, signalling a recovery for an industry hammered by the pandemic.
Shares in PageGroup and Robert Walters rose as much as 6% each in morning trade following the news.
Recruiting firms globally suffered last year as the pandemic forced most businesses to halt hiring, but COVID-19 vaccinations and the re-opening of some economies have encouraged firms to resume recruiting.
Both PageGroup and Robert Walters, which each operate in more than 30 countries, reported higher June-quarter profits from a year earlier but struck a cautiously optimistic tone in their respective statements on Wednesday.
"At this stage of the recovery, it is not easy to determine whether the improved performance is still the result of pent-up supply and demand, or a sustainable trend," PageGroup Chief Executive Officer Steve Ingham said in a statement.
PageGroup's German business saw a "record quarter" and its technology-focused business also benefited from pandemic-driven trends around remote work, the company said.
Within Britain, London was a bright spot for Robert Walters, which noted strong recruitment activity across the commerce, finance, legal and technology sectors.
PageGroup, which helps hire executives, professionals and clerical staff, now expects annual operating profit of between 125 million-135 million pounds ($173 million-186 million), up from a prior estimate of 90 million to 100 million pounds.
Robert Walters projected annual profit be "significantly ahead" of the level it guided in June.
Page's June-quarter gross profit rose 2% compared to the same period in 2019 before the pandemic, while Robert Walters reported its first profit rise in a year.
With hiring gaining steam, their consultant headcount also increased to deal with the rise in demand for their services, they said.
($1 = 0.7243 pounds)
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.