Recruiter Hays considers special payout after strong fee growth

* FY pretax up 18 pct to 156.1 mln stg, in line with expectations

* Net fees up 9 percent like-for-like to 764.2 mln stg

* FY dividend up 5 percent to 2.76 pence per share

* Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) up 2.3 percent (Adds comment on special payout, industry context)

By Li-mei Hoang

LONDON, Aug 27 (Reuters) - British recruitment company Hays Plc sees clear opportunities for further growth in the year ahead, it said on Thursday after reporting a strong advance in net fees from all of its key regions for the first time in seven years.

The company, which places workers in areas such as finance, construction and IT (Other OTC: ITGL - news) , said it is on track to hit its target of broadly doubling group operating profit by 2018.

It also repeated it is considering a special payout to shareholders next year. "If the outlook continues to be good and we have a reasonable level of spare cash, we may be in a position where we can reward the shareholders with some sort of token special dividend," Chief Executive Alistair Cox told Reuters.

Hays (LSE: HAS.L - news) , which raised its full-year dividend 5 percent to 2.76 pence per share, had said in July it would consider a special dividend next year from an expected cash surplus after paying off debts.

Recruiters such as Hays, Michael Page and Robert Walters are often seen as economic bellwethers because companies tend to hire more permanent staff when confidence levels rise.

Earlier this month Michael Page posted a rise in first-half profit on the back of strong demand in Britain and United States.

Hays shares, which plunged to a more than three-month low on Monday, were up 2.3 percent at 157.7p by 1053 GMT.

The company, which operates in 33 countries, posted a 9 percent rise in like-for-like net fees to 764.2 million pounds ($1.18 billion) in the year to June 30.

The UK and Ireland (Other OTC: IRLD - news) , which accounts for more than a third of the business, achieved net fee growth of 11 percent and Cox said the company's momentum has continued into the new financial year.

"We've had a good start ... We are seeing double-digit growth rates across dozens of countries around the world," he said, pointing to Asia, Britain, Spain and France among others.

Hays' permanent placements grew by 13 percent over the year, led by the UK, Australia and some parts of Europe. Temporary placements were up 7 percent.

The company also increased its own headcount by 9 percent, adding about 600 consultants.

Pretax profit rose 18 percent to 156.1 million pounds, in line with analysts' expectations, despite a 9.6 million pound hit from currency effects. ($1 = 0.6460 pounds) (Editing by David Goodman and David Holmes)