Adecco posts 45% jump in second quarter

The world's biggest temporary staffing group Adecco said Wednesday that its second quarter net profit soared 45 percent to 141 million euros ($202 million), thanks to strong demand in the industrial segment. Revenues were up 11 percent at 5.166 billion euros for the three months ending June, and the Swiss-based group forecasted that the third would also be a strong quarter. "We had again very solid double-digit revenue growth this quarter, still driven by strong demand in the industrial segment," said Patrick De Maeseneire, Adecco chief executive officer. "Revenue growth in July was a touch lower than June and from today’s perspective we expect a solid third quarter," he added. Amid the current economic uncertainties, De Maeseneire stressed that the group would "keep a close lid on our cost base." France, Adecco's biggest market, posted a 15 percent revenue growth for the second quarter. North America also held up well, with an increase of 12 percent. But the strongest performance came from Italy, where revenues rose 35 percent and from Germany and Austria, which recorded a 31 percent jump in demand. Revenues were however flat in Britain and Ireland, while in Japan, they grew just 4 percent.