Specialist recruitment services provider Nakama Group (NAK: AIM) provided a trading update for the year ending 31 March 2017.

The Board of Directors expect revenue to be in the region of £22.5 million, an increase from £21.0 million last year. The Directors also expect a similar increase in Net Fee Income which stood at £5.73 million last year. The Directors also expect that for the year to 31 March 2017, EBITDA will be below that of the previous year and there will be a small loss before tax.

Meanwhile, trading in the first two months of the current financial year is ahead of the same period last year.

At the time of the release of the interim results on 1 December 2016 the Board of Directors had expected a stronger second half to the year, however progress within the UK, Singapore and Melbourne businesses was slower than expected.

The group stated that it experienced fluctuations in headcount during the first half of the year which took longer than expected to correct and this produced a knock-on effect that led to a slower than anticipated recovery during the second half of the year. However, Nakama Group stated that the businesses started to deliver a gradual upturn towards the end of the financial year and the Australia and Hong Kong businesses continued to trade strongly.

The group also stated that market conditions have seen weaker trading in the contracting market as more customers turn to a RPO or in-house solution. This has seen the businesses continue to focus on core services but start to diversify their product and service offerings in core markets.

The Board of Nakama Group expect to announce the annual results in the first week of August 2017.

In trading today, Nakama Group shares were down 6.67% at £1.75. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of £2.21 million.