U.K. Recruiters Report Better-Than-Expected Results as Labor Market Shows Signs of Stabilizing

U.K. recruitment firms have reported results that beat market expectations, suggesting the labor market is showing signs of stabilizing after several years of weakness. According to Jin10, recruiter Robert Walters said on Tuesday that net fee income in the first half of this year fell 3% year over year, a marked improvement from the 14% decline recorded for full-year 2025. Chief Executive Officer Toby Fowlston said that at the start of the second half, the company maintained “good business growth momentum” across multiple markets. PageGroup said on Monday that its second-quarter net fee income was above market expectations, supported by strong growth in its Asia and Americas businesses. The company said markets representing about half of its business had returned to growth. Hays also reported net fee income that came in better than expected last week and forecast that profit in fiscal year 2026 would reach the upper end of its prior guidance range. The report cited data released last month indicating that since the outbreak of the Iran war, the U.K. labor market has performed better than previously expected.