Latest News
3 May 2007
Trading Update 3 May 2007
In advance of its preliminary results for the year ended 31 March 2007, Prime People, the specialist recruitment group to the real estate, commercial property and infrastructure sectors (AIM: PRP.L) today gives an update on trading.
Net fee income (‘NFI’) for the year ended March 2007 grew by 23% to £10.8 million (2006 pro forma: £8.8 million), with the four overseas offices opened during the year already contributing 10% of total NFI in the period.
During the year Prime People set up offices in Dubai, Hong Kong, Australia and the Republic of South Africa.. The Dubai and Hong Kong offices, which were established in the first half of the year, are accessing areas of particularly high GDP growth with strong market conditions for the Company’s services. The Australian and South African offices, which opened more recently, address local markets and facilitate the global movement of the professionals that the Company places.
In opening the Australian operation the Company took advantage of an opportunity, which was not originally planned for, and this has given rise to start-up costs of approximately £0.09m. A slower start to trading in Hong Kong than had been previously anticipated, resulted in start-up losses of £0.08 million in the period.
All four overseas offices offer the potential for significant growth in the current and future years and the Company expects NFI derived from overseas offices to continue to increase as a proportion of total NFI in 2007/8.
The Board expects that pre tax profits for the year ended 31 March 2007 will be around £2.0 million net of the above investment costs, an increase of 14% on the previous year (2006 pro forma: £1.76 million).
Further detail will be given when the Company announces its preliminary results on 7 June 2007.
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Enquiries
Prime People 020 7318 1785
Robert Macdonald, Executive Chairman
Chris Heayberd, Finance Director
Arbuthnot Securities 020 7012 2000
Andrew Fullerton / Ian Williams
Hogarth 020 7735 9477
James Longfield / Georgina Briscoe / Charlie Field