MARKET REPORT: Recruiter hit as inflation rocks client confidence

Shares in Robert Walters suffered a fresh dip yesterday after the recruitment firm warned economic turmoil was weighing on candidate and client confidence.

Inflation has forced companies to cut jobs and press pause on hiring new staff.

That hurt business as net fee income fell 11 per cent to £99.9million in the three months to the end of June.

Its UK division, which saw fees plunge 21 per cent to £16million, took a hit amid lay-offs across the tech sector and volatility in the financial services industry.

The mood in Europe was brighter – thanks to record earnings in Belgium.

But trading remained tough elsewhere, with hiring disruption in the US and a sluggish recovery from Covid in China.

Chief executive Toby Fowlston, who took over from founder Robert Walters in April, said: ‘Candidate confidence and time to hire are not yet showing the anticipated signs of sustained improvement.’ 

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: ‘High job vacancies and worker shortages in the UK mean wage costs are going up, also disincentivising businesses from taking on extra staff.’

The group last month warned that hiring delays meant that its profit for 2023 will be ‘significantly lower’ than the £43million analysts had expected.

Robert Walter’s shares fell 1.2 per cent, or 5p, to 420p.

Ferrexpo, the Ukrainian iron ore miner, was also in focus as its interim chairman warned that it does not have ‘sufficient availability’ at alternative Black Sea ports to export more. Lucio Genovese’s comments came as the company said that the war in Ukraine remained ‘very challenging’.

Despite this, Ferrexpo’s second pellet line was back up and running, which helped iron ore production to increase by 18 per cent in the three months to the end of June compared with the previous quarter. 

Stock Watch – Net Zero 

Shares in investment firm I(x) Net Zero rocketed after Wastefuel, its largest holding, got £8million from BP to develop factories around the world to turn waste into biomethanol, which may help decarbonise the shipping sector.

As a result, the value of its stake in Wastefuel almost tripled, to £104million.

Its portfolio is now worth £117million – up from £50million at the end of December last year.

Shares, which floated at 76p last year, surged 91.4 per cent, or 12.8p, to 26.8p.

Shares fell 4.7 per cent, or 4.4p, to 89.7p.

Elsewhere it was a disappointing start for the £851million float of UK-based fintech CAB Payments on the London stock market.

Shares fell 9.5 per cent, or 32p, to 303p on its first day of trading.

The group, which specialises in foreign exchange and helps businesses send money to emerging markets, had floated at 335p.

Its listing was announced last month and the group is expected to join the FTSE 250, which fell 2.6 per cent, or 476.87 points, to 17,916.46. The FTSE 100 closed 2.2 per cent, or 161.60 points lower at 7280.50.

United Utilities was one of three blue-chip risers on a volatile day for the rest of the index. Shares rose 1.5 per cent, or 14.4p, to 947.2p after the investment bank Morgan Stanley raised the water firm’s rating to ‘overweight’ from ‘equal-weight’ and lifted the target price to 1220p from 1040p.

Man Group strengthened its foothold across the Atlantic after the investment manager agreed to buy a controlling interest in the US fund Varagon. It inched up 0.1 per cent, or 0.2p, to 218.2p.

Pod Point, the electric vehicle charging provider, saw its shares dive 11.1 per cent, or 8p, to 64p after its founder and chief executive Erik Fairbairn stepped down after 14 years at the helm.

Fairbairn, who set up the company in 2009, will be replaced temporarily by interim boss Andy Palmer, the former chief executive of luxury car maker Aston Martin who also sits on the board of Pod Point. 

Pod Point said that later this month Palmer would ‘outline actions to address challenging current market conditions and position Pod Point for long-term profitability’.

Additional reporting by Cameron Buchanan

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk