The companies are “expect” and see “in recruiting due to uncertainties related to the repercussions of US customs tasks, explained the chief of Adecco during the presentation of the quarterly results of the group, a little better than expected.
For the first quarter, the group specialized in the placement of the staff reported on Thursday a drop in billing in a market still under pressure, especially in the car in Europe, which did not prevent its action from saving more than 10% in the stock market in view of their market share.
In the immediate future, “customers do not make decisions,” said Denis Machuel, general director of the Swiss group, during an interview with AFP, which specifies that “until now” these customs tasks have not yet had “visible” effects.
“The only impact that we see at the moment is a slowdown in permanent recruitment,” he added, companies doubt in investing in new employees whenever they “have no visibility” on repercussions for their activity. “On the other hand, this gives temporary employees an impulse,” he observes.
Like the head of his Dutch competitor Randstad, but also of American labor, Denis Machuel points out that companies are “in waiting mode, and see the” whenever they try to understand what the repercussions of these customs rights will be.
When they understand how to handle the situation, in particular to know “whether or not they have to relocate their production,” they can “make decisions again,” he said.
Market participation gains
For the first quarter, Adecco published a net gain by 19% compared to the same period of the previous year. Its turnover fell 3%, to almost 5.6 billion euros, exceeding the forecasts of analysts interviewed by the Swiss AWP agency, which expected it on average at 5.5 billion euros.
Excluding the exchange effects, their income was flexed 9% in the permanent recruitment and 4% in the placement of temporary personnel, but increased by 3% in career transition services, Adecco are detailed in a press release.
In France, its largest market, the income of its investment branch of the personnel hired by 9%, due to a low demand in logistics and the car. They also fell 8% in Germany and Austria, hindered by industry and logistics, and 9% in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Akkodis, its branch of technology services of the fusion group of the Franco-Belgaa Akka group and its Modis subsidiary, saw its income fall by 8%, the decrease that encrypted 11% in North America. In this branch, its income decreased by 5% in advice and 13% in the placement of the personnel.
However, in the press release, the group specified that the volumes, at the scale of the group, improved during the first quarter and that a positive “modest” dynamic continues so far in the second quarter.
-9% in France
“From the beginning of the year, months after month, we have seen that our volumes improve slightly,” Denis Machuel insisted.
“Trends in volumes are encouraging,” Michael Foeth, a Vontobel analyst, reacted in a market comment. He also points out that Adecco “continues to gain market share” in an “unfavorable” environment.
Its organic growth, an indicator very often by analysts to evaluate the hiring rate, only hired by 2% during the first quarter, therefore, Adecco does it “better than its competitors,” says the analyst.
In comparison, this indicator folded 4.2% for Randstad and 4.6% for labor in the first quarter.
Source: BFM TV
