Continued US Weakness Hits WPP Revenues
Continued weakness in the US economy has pushed WPP Q1 revenues down by 2% on last year, £945.8 million for the period to end of March 2002 compared with £966.4 million last year.
A 6% revenue increase in Europe was abrogated by a drop of 7% in North America, the UK was up over 2%. Growth in advertising and media investment management was flat but public relations was the biggest loser, falling 13% for the quarter. Information and consultancy was up over 6% .
On a like-for-like basis, excluding acquisitions and currency fluctuations, revenues fell by almost 9%. Net debt for the quarter increased to £1,505 million, compared to £987 million last year.
