"In the first nine months of 2011, reported revenues were up 7.1% at £7.170 billion, up 12.9% in US dollars to $11.573 billion and up 5.2% in Euros to €8.225 billion. In constant currencies, revenues were up 8.2%, chiefly reflecting the weakness of the pound sterling against most major currencies. On a like-for-like basis, excluding the impact of acquisitions and currency fluctuations, revenues were up 5.6% and the more relevant gross margin up 6.4%."
Current Trading
"At the half year, headline operating margins improved 0.7 margin points to 11.0% compared with 10.3% in the first half of 2010. Operating margins, before short and long-term incentives and the cost of share-based incentives, were 13.9%, up 0.8 margin points compared with 13.1% last year. Operating margins, both before and after incentives, also improved over last year in the third quarter, despite significantly tougher comparatives. As a result, our full year operating margin should improve beyond the 70 basis points or 0.7 margin points achieved in the first half and in comparison to the budgeted operating profit margin improvement of 0.5 margin points. This is reflected in the Groups third quarter revised forecast.
Headcount, as also reflected in the Group's first-half results, has grown during 2011, reflecting net hiring, particularly in the United Kingdom and the faster growing markets of Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East and Central and Eastern Europe. On a like-for-like basis, the number of people in the Group (excluding associates) at 30 September was 112,574, compared with 108,452 at 31 December 2010, an increase of 3.8%. On the same basis, average headcount in the first nine months was 108,813, compared with 103,988in the first nine months of last year, an increase of 4.6%. Like-for-like revenues in the first nine months were up 5.6%, with gross margin, a better source of cost comparison, up 6.4%.
The first nine months of 2011 have continued the improvement in like-for-like revenue growth seen in the first half, despite even tougher comparatives. Although there has been some slowdown in the growth rate in the United States, this has been largely counter-balanced, by faster growth in the United Kingdom, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East and Central and Eastern Europe.
To date, we have seen little, if any impact of six global risks - feared Euro contagion, lack of attention to the US deficit, rising commodity prices, the impact of the tragic events in Japan, uncertainties caused by the Arab Spring and finally the possibility of the withdrawal of the post-Lehman fiscal and monetary stimulus - on client spending, although there was some geographic impact on Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Greece, Japan and the Middle East. However, the continuous macro economic gloom and despair in the media and elsewhere must have some impact on both corporate and consumer confidence. As a result, the marginal hire or investment by uncertain CEOs and Boards and marginal purchase of a car or house or holiday or domestic appliance by worried consumers must be affected."
