MARKETS | RECRUITMENT EARNINGS
A fifth straight quarter of growth across Asia and a return to form in southern Europe helped PageGroup beat market expectations in the June quarter, even as Australia stayed flat and the UK and core Europe remained under pressure
London
PageGroup has delivered a second-quarter result that beat analyst expectations, leaning on continued strength in Asia and the Americas to offset a stalling Europe, in a result that offers one of the clearer reads yet on how unevenly the global recruitment recovery is unfolding market by market.
The headline numbers
The London-listed recruiter reported second-quarter gross profit of £197.6 million for the quarter ended 30 June, down just 0.2 percent on a constant-currency basis but ahead of the company-provided analyst consensus. For the first half overall, gross profit came in at £385.2 million, down 1.1 percent on a reported basis and 2.4 percent in constant-currency terms.
Chief executive Nicholas Kirk described it as a good performance given the backdrop.
“The group produced a good performance in Q2, despite ongoing challenging market conditions,” Kirk said, pointing to continued growth in Asia Pacific and the Americas and a return to growth in southern Europe during the quarter.
The market responded accordingly; PageGroup shares jumped as much as 11.5 percent on the day of the announcement.
Asia carries the group
Asia Pacific, which makes up 17 percent of the group, grew 9.4 percent in the quarter. Within that, Asia recorded its fifth consecutive quarter of growth, up 11 percent, with nine of its 11 markets expanding. Greater China rose 17 percent, including 28 percent growth in mainland China alone, Japan grew 18 percent, and India delivered another record quarter, up 7 percent.
Australia flat, a note of caution for local watchers
Closer to home, Australia was flat for the quarter, a result that stands out against the growth recorded across most of the rest of Asia Pacific. For a market that has seen persistent softness in white-collar hiring over the past two years, a flat quarter reads as a stabilisation story rather than a bad one, though it leaves Australia trailing the pace being set by China, Japan and India within the same region.
Europe remains the drag
The weaker spots for PageGroup remain familiar ones: the UK and core European markets continued to soften, even as southern Europe returned to growth for the first time in some time. The pattern echoes what much of the recruitment sector has reported this earnings season, a two-speed global market where Asian white-collar hiring has largely stabilised or grown while European employers stay cautious.
A sector-wide signal
PageGroup’s result lands in the same reporting window as updates from rival recruiters Robert Walters and ManpowerGroup, both of which pointed to a similar theme of gradual stabilisation after a difficult 2025. Robert Walters reported first-half net fees down 3 percent on a constant-currency basis, a marked improvement on the 14 percent fall recorded over the same period in 2025, with the company noting stronger momentum in the UK, Japan, Spain and New Zealand. ManpowerGroup, for its part, reported second-quarter revenue of US$4.9 billion, up 8 percent year-on-year and 6 percent in constant currency, and swung to net earnings of US$1.13 per diluted share from a loss of US$1.44 per share a year earlier. Taken together, the three results suggest the global recruitment downturn may be bottoming out, unevenly, and market by market, rather than lifting all at once.
Editor’s note: PageGroup and Robert Walters figures in this draft are sourced via secondary financial media citing company statements and trading updates. ManpowerGroup figures are confirmed against the company’s own PR Newswire release and investor site. Recommend verifying the PageGroup and Robert Walters numbers against their official RNS filings or investor relations pages before final publication, per house style.
Sources
Finimize, “PageGroup’s Results Show Hiring Held Up Outside Europe”: https://finimize.com/content/pagegroup-beats-forecasts-as-cost-cuts-offset-europe-slowdown
Investing.com, “PageGroup Q2 2026 slides: mixed results as Asia, Americas offset Europe”: https://au.investing.com/news/company-news/pagegroup-q2-2026-slides-mixed-results-as-asia-americas-offset-europe-93CH-4529180
Staffing Industry Analysts, “PageGroup Q2 gross profit edges lower”: https://www.staffingindustry.com/news/global-daily-news/pagegroup-q2-gross-profit-edges-lower
PR Newswire, “ManpowerGroup Reports 2nd Quarter 2026 Results”: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/manpowergroup-reports-2nd-quarter-2026-results-302827010.html
AdvFN, “Robert Walters Says First-Half Trading Met Expectations as Recruitment Markets Stabilise”: https://uk.advfn.com/market-news/article/19448/robert-walters-says-first-half-trading-met-expectations-as-recruitment-markets-stabilise-rwa
