Advertising Slows At Trinity Mirror Titles

Trinity Mirror chairman, Sir Victor Blank, this morning told the company’s AGM that advertising growth for the first three months of the year slowed, but remains in line with the outlook given by Trinity in its preliminary results.

In April, the rate of growth for Trinity’s regional titles was slower than the first quarter in all categories (although recruitment advertising growth remained strong) and the national titles saw a small decline in advertising revenue compared to April 2000. Early indications for May are an improvement on April’s performance in both the regional and national titles, said Blank.

The board of Trinity Mirror said it expects a satisfactory outturn for the year, although the economic environment contains uncertainties that limit the ability to estimate future advertising revenue trends with confidence.

Analysts at ABN Amro say that Trinity is entering the toughest period for comparables and the national titles are likely to show flat advertising growth in Q2. However, this takes place against a declining advertising market in general, with ITV advertising potentially showing declines of up to 20% this quarter.

The broker expects advertising to grow by 3.5% at Trinity’s nationals and by 5% at the regionals, for the full year. This is assuming that the UK economy does not catch the economic ‘cold’ currently affecting the US.

Trinity Mirror: 020 7293 3000

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