Merrill Lynch Upgrades 2002 Forecast For US Radio
Analysts at Merrill Lynch are upgrading their US radio advertising growth forecasts following a strong September, which saw revenues rise by 17% year on year, according to the Radio Advertising Bureau (see US Radio Figures Looking Stronger And Stronger, Up 17% In September).
The broker is maintaining its Q4 2002 forecast of 10% growth, but has raised the full year figure from 5.2% to 5.7% following the release of September’s figures yesterday.
The forecast for spend in 2003 is being maintained at around $20 billion due to the lack of visibility beyond 2002. This results in a slight downgrade to the 2003 growth figure from 5.6% to 5.2%, given the stronger than expected performance of this year.
| US Radio Ad Revenue Growth | |
| Year On Year Growth (%) | |
| July | 9.0 |
| August | 5.0 |
| September | 17.0 |
| Q3 2002 | 10.0 |
| October | 10.0 |
| November | 9.0 |
| December | 10.0 |
| Q4 2002 | 10.0 |
| FY 2002 | 5.7 |
| FY 2003 | 5.2 |
| Source: RAB/Merrill Lynch, November 2002 | |
