Hogg sees recovery starting to take off

The firm – whose major UK customers include HSBC, Next and KPMG – has seen "more normal" activity levels among clients, although US and European regions are lagging behind emerging market business.

The Basingstoke-based company said trading since October had been broadly in line with hopes as the firm weathered the impact of the snow by laying on alternative travel arrangements for clients.

The firm said the weather would have no major impact on full-year results, although the last two months of its financial year were difficult to forecast.

Chief executive David Radcliffe said: "Clients continue to travel and we are seeing early signs of stabilisation, albeit market conditions remain challenging with limited forward visibility."

Although underlying revenues over the four months were 9 per cent down on a year earlier, Hogg's shares rose as it added new names to its client roster such as Volkswagen and the US Embassy.

The company highlighted figures from the International Air Transport Association which showed year-on-year growth in passenger traffic during October, November and December.

Hogg has cut costs to match the lower demand, reducing its global workforce by around 20 per cent to 5,500 over the past 18 months, which should benefit next year's results.