Profit in the six months ended September 30 rose to $4.4 million from $1.7 million and sales climbed 29% to $61.9 million.

Annual net profit for the year ended March 31 fell 19% to $2.6 million because of non-cash write-downs. Underlying earnings rose 27%.

AWF Group, the contract labour company, reports a 23% fall in net profit as it writes down the value of its goodwill, even though sales rose by 19%.

Interviews at Drake Recruitment have commenced this week for those applying for stevedore positions at Ports of Auckland, with Allied Workforce close behind.