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SYDNEY - Seek, Australia's biggest internet job site, says first-half profit surged 63 per cent as the nation's jobless rate reached a 30-year low and employers shifted to online advertising. The shares rose to a record.
Net income rose to A$23.9 million ($27 million) in the six months ended December 31 from A$14.7 million a year ago, the Melbourne-based company said.
Shares in Seek, which is 27 per cent owned by James Packer's Publishing & Broadcasting, have more than tripled since they started trading on the ASX in April 2005.
"They are weathering the perfect storm," said Simon Smiles, a media analyst at UBS in Sydney. "There's tightness in the labour market, classifieds continue to move online and Seek is gaining market share."
Seek shares surged A59c, or 9.34 per cent, to A$6.91 by the close of trade.
Online job advertisements in Australia jumped 26.7 per cent in the half as companies moved to the internet to target young workers.
Print classifieds fell 3.5 per cent over the same period, according to an ANZ Banking Group report.
- BLOOMBERG
