By Sarah Young
LONDON (Reuters) - British recruitment company Michael Page International (L:MPI) said business in its biggest markets, the UK and France, was performing well, putting it on track to meet full-year forecasts, after it reported a rise in quarterly profit.
The company said gross profit rose 10 percent on a constant currency basis in the third quarter compared with the same period a year earlier, driven by growth in the UK, France, Germany and Spain.
Chief Executive Steve Ingham said he was comfortable with analyst forecasts for a full-year pretax profit of 91 million pounds ($139 million), barring further adverse currency movements.
"At the moment there are no indications that things are going to slow," he told Reuters on Tuesday.
Shares in Michael Page International, also known as PageGroup, climbed 2.4 percent to 475.5 pence at 0849 GMT, making the firm one of the top climbers on Britain's mid-cap index.
Panmure Gordon analyst Adrian Kearsey said Michael Page's statement would reassure investors in the staffing sector following a weak update from rival recruiter Hays (L:HAYS) last week.
Hays slumped to a 10-month low on Thursday after a trading update from the company showed a slowdown in net fee growth in its main UK market.
"This morning's third quarter trading update from PageGroup will probably serve as a calming influence, with underlying constant currency growth broadly in-line," the analyst said.
Michael Page International said its UK gross profit was up 12.5 percent in the third quarter, helped by demand for staff from its clients in the property, construction, legal and HR sectors.
"There are no signs of it either growing faster or slowing down, so that's very positive," the chief executive said of the UK business.