By Olivier Sorgho
(Reuters) -Randstad, the world's biggest staffing firm, on Tuesday flagged weaker demand in a "challenging" jobs market, even as it beat expectations for second-quarter core earnings.
Randstad, which recruits for companies and helps people find jobs, echoed the warnings of other recruiters as tough economic conditions drive some employers to job cuts and hiring freezes.
U.S.-listed peer ManpowerGroup (NYSE:MAN) last week also flagged weak demand for permanent recruitment, and British recruiters said earlier in July that employers were taking longer to hire new staff, especially in the U.S., Britain and China.
"In North America, like in Europe by the way, I would say the market is normalizing," Randstad CEO Sander van't Noordende said in an interview.
"We've had an enormous surge in demand post-COVID ... from there we have sort of gradually seen demand pull back," he added.
The company's shares recouped early losses to rise 3.5% by 1013 GMT, as its quarterly core profit beat market forecasts.
Underlying earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITA) fell 12% to 271 million euros ($299.8 million), but exceeded the 260 million seen in a company-provided poll.
Executives put some of Randstand's businesses more or less in line at the beginning of July with their second quarter performance, giving markets "a little bit of comfort" that things didn't get much worse, ING analyst Marc Zwartsenburg said.
Randstad said organic revenue per working day fell 5.1% in the quarter versus a year earlier. It saw a 14% drop in North America and a 6% decline in Northern Europe, with growth in Asia-Pacific and Latin America.
Its most challenging sectors were logistics, business and IT services, and manufacturing, while automotive and the public sector "held up strong", van't Noordende said.
A grim economic outlook has led some employers to cut jobs, freeze hiring or turn to temporary workers. Data showed the U.S. economy added the fewest jobs in 2-1/2 years in June.
An employer survey from the World Economic Forum earlier this year found that employment could decrease 2% by 2027.
($1 = 0.9038 euros)