First-quarter revenue at Swedish staffing firm Poolia (POOLB: SS) increased by 0.6%, year-on-year, during the first quarter ending 31 March 2018 to SEK 200.4 (€19.1 million).

During the period, Poolia CEO Morten Werner announced to the Board that he intends to step down by the end of the year.

Werner commented on the results, “Poolia's total turnover of just over SEK 200 million (€19.1 million) for the first quarter was slightly higher compared to the same period in 2017. This despite the fact that the number of working days was fewer this year compared with the first quarter of 2017.”

“Demand for recruitment and crew services remains good in all three countries in which Poolia operates,” Werner said. “At the same time, the lack of candidates, coupled with the fact that a large number of our consultants switch to employment with customers, continue to adversely affect the company's growth. This development in the rental business has been clear in Germany and Sweden over the last two years. Now we notice similar tendencies even in Finland. We see no signs that the situation will change in the foreseeable future.”

In Sweden, Poolia won several contracts during the period, including from the Swedish Transport Administration. Swedish operations share of the group's revenues increased to 69.4% compared to 68.8% last year.

In Poolia Germany, the rental business has deteriorated due to a challenging market with fierce competition for qualified personnel. German operations accounted for 25.3%, down from 26.1% last year.

Meanwhile, in Finland, the company saw increased demand for services, especially in recruitment. Finnish operations accounted for 5.2% of revenues, same as last year.

“We spend considerable time and resources on streamlining operations and adapting to new market conditions to better meet customer and consultant expectations,” Werner said. “Thus we create the conditions for even stronger growth and improved profitability. Poolia's long-term goals and strategies are established.”

In trading today, Poolia traded at SEK 13.00 (€1.24), up 4.42% on the day and 10.17% above the 52 week low of SEK 11.80 (€1.13) set on 9 April 2018. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of SEK 169.62 million (€16.2 million).