ZURICH, March 12 (Reuters) - Adecco, the world's No.1 staffing agency, grew revenue for the first time in seven quarters in constant currency terms, helped by strong demand for flexible workers in parts of Europe.
Excluding currency swings, fourth-quarter revenue at the Zurich-based firm rose 4 percent to 4.94 billion euros ($6.85 billion), marking the first quarterly revenue growth for the staffing company since the first quarter of 2012.
Fourth-quarter net profit came in at 174 million euros compared to 35 million a year earlier, and well ahead of the 126 million euros forecast by analysts in a poll.
The staffing sector is generally seen as a barometer of economic health because companies tend to hire temporary workers at the beginning of a recovery when most businesses are reluctant to commit to full-time hiring.