Americas give Regus a profit boost

Office space provider Regus reported a sharp increase in half year profit helped by a robust performance at its business in the Americas.

For the six months ended 30 June 2012 group revenue grew 7.6% to £608.6m while mature like-for-like revenue increased 2.6%. Profit before tax surged to £32.2m during the period from £13.8m the same time a year earlier.

Revenue from the firm's mature business within the Americas increased 6% to £242.7m following higher occupancy rates.

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Mark Dixon, Chief Executive said: "Our mature business saw strong demand across all geographies and customer types, with profitability more than doubling on the back of improvements in occupancy and yield management. We continue to invest to satisfy this growth in demand, adding another 76 centres in the period."

"Overall, our business continues to perform well and in line with our expectations," it added.

The interim dividend has been increased 11% to 1p.

CJ