Technical recruiter Networkers International has seen a 15% rise in adjusted pre-tax profits for the first six months of 2012, during which period group headcount rose by the exact same ratio.

Pre-tax profit, adjusted for the add-back of amortisation of intangible assets arising on business combinations, was £3.45m, while net fee income (NFI) rose by 16.7% to £15.89m.

Permanent placements made up 20% of NFI, a rise from 16.8% in the first half of 2011. The share of NFI coming from markets outside of the UK increased from 66% to 72%, while 42% of staff were located in overseas offices, again a rise from 36%.

Chief executive Spencer Manuel says: "These results reflect strong growth in our international IT and energy & engineering divisions, although market conditions tightened in the group's telecoms sector which we view as an investment pause ahead of the rollout of the new 4G networks.

“As these rollouts gather momentum, we anticipate a significant increase in new business opportunities from this sector in 2013 and beyond. We remain on track to deliver good growth in line with market expectations, although as expected, we do not anticipate second half profits to quite match the exceptional results achieved in the second half of 2011."