Michael Page posts slip in second-quarter profit

The firm, which places people in accounting, financial and legal jobs across 35 countries, said today second-quarter gross profit was £138m, 6.6 per cent below what was its second highest quarter on record in the same period in 2011.

The figure was up 1.6 per cent on the first quarter of 2012. Michael Page said it expected half and full year operating profit to be “broadly in line” with market estimates, excluding restructuring charges from recent management changes.

Gross profit in its largest region, Europe, Middle East and Africa, fell as markets choked on uncertainty surrounding the eurozone crisis, with Asia Pacific the only region to grow in the quarter against 2011 comparators.

“We anticipate a challenging third quarter as we enter the seasonally quieter summer period in continental Europe and the UK, against tough comparables and an ongoing backdrop of economic uncertainty,” chief executive Steve Ingham said.