Serco is to make a further push overseas in the face of a contract hiatus in the UK.

Nearly all of Serco’s 9 per cent annual sales improvement to £4.33bn ($7.06bn) in the year to December 31 came from the FTSE 100 company’s international operations, including the US, Australasia and the Middle East.

Sales in the UK, where Serco suffered the phasing out of some contracts and cancellation of a prison, were broadly flat at £2.59bn.

Although Chris Hyman, chief executive, remained confident about the prospects for further outsourcing in the longer term, he expected the domestic market to remain “quiet” for the next 12 to 18 months.