(Reuters) - Recruitment firm PageGroup said confidence levels in the British market were "fragile" following the June vote to leave the EU, with multi-national companies holding off hiring, particularly in the financial services sector.
The company, which mainly finds candidates to fill permanent positions, said it was cautious over its short-term outlook due to the uncertainty in Britain as well as challenging conditions in several of its larger markets such as Greater China and Brazil.
"In the UK, confidence levels remained fragile and below levels seen earlier in the year," Chief Executive Steve Ingham said in a statement
PageGroup said third-quarter gross profit from its British operations fell 4.7 percent to 37.8 million pounds in constant currency terms in the three months to Sept. 30, down from the 2.3 percent fall recorded in the previous quarter.
Although the British economy has shown some resilience since Brexit, driven mostly by consumers, surveys released on Monday suggested that firms were much more nervous and showing signs of weak investment intentions.
Recruiters such as PageGroup, Hays Plc (LON:HAYS), Robert Walters Plc and SThree Plc are often seen as a gauge of the economy because people tend to switch jobs more frequently when confidence levels rise.
Rival Hays, which will report its first-quarter results next week, said last month hiring in Britain weakened significantly after Brexit, as private sector clients held off taking on new staff.
PageGroup's worldwide gross profit rose 1.3 percent in constant currency terms to 158.6 million pounds, helped largely by strong growth in Latin America outside of Brazil and Continental Europe -- indicating that the concerns around Brexit had not yet spread to the rest of the continent.