IT recruiter Harvey Nash said first-half profit would be up 20% on last year, after pointing to demand for its services remaining "robust across all geographic regions".

It will announce the results for the six months to July on 10 October.

The company added: "On the assumption current trading conditions continue through the second half, the Board is confident that the financial results for the full year will be slightly ahead of the Board's previous expectations."

For the year to January 2006, Nash reported pre-tax profit of £4m on sales of £202.3m.