PwC holds nerve to boost profits

Professional services firm PwC, which has offices in Leeds, Sheffield and Hull, recruited 2,300 people in the year to June, including more than 1,200 graduates and 100 school leavers.

Contract wins with Aviva, Dubai World and Yule Catto boosted its auditing and assurance division and helped the firm report “a strong performance” in the year despite a “very challenging” market.

Revenues in the UK rose seven per cent to £2.6bn, while profits were up 10.8 per cent to £727m.

Average profit per partner rose 4.6 per cent to £798,000, although the amount they received after payments to retired partners and equity adjustments fell four per cent to £679,000.

Ian Powell, PwC UK chairman and senior partner, said: “We took a decision at the start of the downturn to continue to hold our nerve and invest in our business.

“We have recruited significant numbers of new people, and invested heavily in our infrastructure to make sure we deliver a world class service to our clients.”

He added that there was “significant potential” to increase its share of work among private companies.

But the strong results will attract the attention of the Competition Commission, which is investigating the dominance of the big four accountancy firms over the UK market.