Specialist engineering and professional services staffing firm Gattaca (GATC:LSE) has provided a pre-close Trading Update for the six months to 31 January 2019.

The group delivered a 2% improvement in Net Fee Income (NFI) over the period. 

UK Engineering continued to perform positively in H1, partially offset by UK Technology, particularly Telecoms, which was impacted by planned restructuring within the business unit in Q1. The group also added that its International operations continued to grow strongly, driven in particular by the Americas.

UK Engineering NFI continued to show consistent growth, up 3% year-on-year with strong performances from Infrastructure, Maritime and Engineering Technology. UK Technology NFI declined by -10% year-on-year, driven by UK IT (down -5%) and UK Telecoms (down -35%)

International NFI continued to grow strongly (+15%), driven by the Americas and China.

The group’s permanent revenue mix has increased to 30% in the first half, partly driven by the growth of this business in China and Mexico and the Telecom Infrastructure exit.

Kevin Freeguard, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "The first half of FY19 was a period of progress for the Group, as the restructuring we undertook in Q1 began to bear fruit. The group has performed in line with expectations, with UK Engineering delivering solid growth and our international operations which continuing to grow strongly. UK Technology, particularly Telecoms, was impacted by the Q1 restructuring, however we are encouraged by the initial performance following steps taken to reposition the business during the half.”

"The progress made on net debt is positive and our full year outlook remains in line with the Board's expectations. I look forward to updating the market further in April,” Freeguard said.

As of last trade, Gattaca traded at £113.42, up 1.95% on the day and 18.40% above the 52 week low of 95.80 set on 21 November 2018. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of £35.75 million.