EDINBURGH (Reuters) - Global security firm G4S (CO:G4S) reported a strong start to the year on Thursday, with revenues up almost 9 percent thanks to good demand for its services around the world
The world's largest security services company said it was confident it would hit its annual revenue growth target of 4 to 6 percent thanks to new contract wins and its pipeline and broadly the same trends in its business as in 2016.
"We have delivered good profitable growth across all the regions except Middle East and India which remains challenged," a spokesman for the company said, adding that its U.S. operations had gained from the rollover of retail cash solution contracts from 2016.
The performance of G4S, which provides personnel for security services as well as cash-handling, has been robust while some UK rivals flounder, primarily because it is gradually reducing its exposure to the UK where the market has been under pressure following Britain's vote to leave the European Union.
The United States is now the company's biggest market, providing 27 percent of full year profit in 2016.