Recruitment firm Michael Page warned the final months of 2013 were likely to be challenging but said the market was improving in some countries, including the UK.
The company said that following mixed fortunes in the third quarter, when business was strong in markets including the US, Japan and Spain but weak in Australia, France and Germany, the outlook for the last three months of the year was uncertain.
"Although we have limited visibility, we expect the fourth quarter to be another challenging quarter, with difficult conditions likely to continue in some markets, but with gradual improvements in others," said the chief executive, Steve Ingham, in a trading update.
Michael Page nudged down expectations for full-year operating profit to £68m from the £70.9m previously forecast by analysts.
Shares fell 6% to 465p in morning trading.
In the UK gross profit rose by 5% to £31m in the third quarter, which was the best quarterly performance since the second three months of 2011.
The company reported a record quarter for jobs in property and construction, buying and merchandising, design and production and digital marketing in the UK, which accounts for 24% of gross profit.
It added: "The quarter also saw good performances from our finance, legal, engineering and logistics disciplines. A good performance was also seen from our public sector business, which now makes up 12% of the UK, which grew at 20%."Michael Page's own headcount rose by 47 over the quarter "with the graduate intake and reflecting the more confident outlook".
Gross profit across all its international regions combined increased by 0.4% to £127m, boosted by temporary work placements. Gross profit from temporary recruitment rose 4.4% to £30.2m, but fell by 0.8% to £96.8m for permanent recruitment.
The company also announced the appointment of Kelvin Stagg as acting chief financial officer after Andrew Bracey resigned on Friday.
The update from Michael Page came ahead of the latest official figures for UK unemployment on Wednesday. The jobless rate is expected to fall to 7.6% from 7.7% as the economic outlook brightens, edging closer to the 7% mark at which the Bank of England has stated it will consider raising interest rates.
Meanwhile, private sector employment rose in the UK last month according to the Lloyds commercial banking regional purchasing managers' index. The survey, compiled by Markit, suggested the West Midlands enjoyed the biggest rise in employment, followed by the north-west, as economic growth fuelled confidence and hiring.