Britain's Compass Group , the world's biggest catering firm, expects first-half underlying revenues to rise around 5.5 percent after seeing a return to growth in Europe and Japan and strong demand in its North American business.

The company said on Monday organic revenue growth -- which excludes acquisitions -- in North America for the period ended March 31 was expected to be around 8 percent, helped by new business and unusually high customer retention rates.

Europe and Japan also returned to growth, with organic revenue growth expected to be around 0.5 percent, despite a mixed economic backdrop across the regions.