There will be a substantial recovery in advertising in 2004, even if there is a war in Iraq, says WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell.
Speaking at a conference in Seoul in South Korea, Sorrell is reported as saying that he is sticking with his previous forecasts of a real recovery in 2004 and little before then (see
No Impulse For Ad Recovery Until 2004, Says Sorrell). He said that the possibility of war has been factored in to these predictions.
The US presidential elections and the Olympics are both expected to boost revenues in 2004.
Sorrell was in Korea speaking about WPP’s acquisition of a majority stake in the country’s second-largest advertising agency, LG Ad (see WPP Takes Stake In Korea’s LG Ad).
There was also news this week that WPP is planning to place more focus on the marketing services sector, in order to boost the proportion of its global revenues gained from this area.
Currently, marketing services accounts for around 55% of WPP’s revenues, whilst advertising brings in the remaining 45%. However, in a prolonged advertising downturn marketing services businesses tend to be more robust than advertising-led divisions.
