Recruiter Michael Page plans Southeast Asia push

(Adds CEO, analyst comments)

By Li-mei Hoang

July 15 (Reuters) - Recruitment firm Michael Page plans to open offices in Indonesia and Thailand after it reported a 25 percent rise in profit in the Asia Pacific region in the second quarter, the British company said on Tuesday.

The region, which accounts for 21 percent of its profit, saw record growth in China of 37 percent.

"Our business overall in Asia was up 25 percent in the quarter... it's approaching 800 people, so Asia is a good market for us," CEO Steve Ingham said.

Group profit rose by 8.9 percent in the second quarter, in constant currency, with profit at 137.2 million pounds ($233.46 million), up from 135.1 million a year earlier.

The company, which mainly finds candidates to fill permanent positions, said that all four of its regions grew, adding it expects to perform in line with its full-year profit forecast for 538.5 million pounds.

Michael Page increased its headcount by 2 percent during the second quarter and in Britain, which accounts for 25 percent of its profit, revenue rose by 11.1 percent to 34.8 million pounds.

Britain's labour market recovery gathered speed last month as a record number of people found work and drove unemployment to its lowest level in more than five years, data from the Office of National Statistics showed.

Last week its rival Hays (LSE: HAS.L - news) said it planned to raise its dividend for the first time since 2008 after it saw strong growth in fees in the UK and Ireland (Other OTC: IRLD - news) .

But growth in Europe, Middle East and Africa, which accounts for 40 percent of its profit, was 5 percent in constant currency.

Shares in Michael Page rose by 2.3 percent to 438 pence by 0831 GMT, making it one of the highest risers on the FTSE 250 index.

"There remain on-going signs of underlying improvement in most markets and further selective investment should continue to position Page well for the medium term," Panmure Research analyst Paul Jones said. ($1 = 0.5877 British Pounds) (Reporting by Li-mei Hoang, editing by Louise Heavens)