UK commercial revenue growth for the third quarter has beaten analysts’ expectations by turning in a 3.2% year on year growth to £140 million, according to the latest figures released by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) this morning.
In September, analysts at Merrill Lynch forecast that Q3 would be down by 5.0%, following two quarters of slim growth at the beginning of the year. More recent trading figures from the main radio operators appeared to confirm this prognosis (see UK Radio Trading Remains Weak Into Q4). However, the figures show a gradually improving rate of growth for the industry and the third consecutive quarter of positive numbers.
The strengthening performance has come mainly from the sponsorship and promotions sector (S&P), which saw revenues rise by 17.6% to £19.1 million in Q3, far outstripping the overall market’s growth. National advertising remains weak, dipping by 0.7%, whilst local grew by 5.9%.
Capital Radio and EMAP both release financial results this week, providing an update of their revenue performance.
| UK Radio Revenue Trends | |||||
| Qtr End | Local | National | S&P | Total | Year On Year Growth (%) |
| Q3 2000 | 35.0 | 94.3 | 15.5 | 144.8 | 22.7 |
| Q4 2000 | 38.0 | 106.8 | 15.4 | 160.3 | 22.3 |
| Q1 2001 | 32.2 | 89.6 | 13.3 | 135.1 | 0.8 |
| Q2 2001 | 35.7 | 84.8 | 16.1 | 136.6 | -12.2 |
| Q3 2001 | 36.1 | 83.2 | 16.3 | 135.6 | -6.4 |
| Q4 2001 | 38.5 | 86.8 | 16.4 | 141.7 | -11.6 |
| Q1 2002 | 35.0 | 85.4 | 15.3 | 135.7 | 0.5 |
| Q2 2002 | 36.9 | 83.8 | 18.9 | 139.5 | 2.2 |
| Q3 2002 | 38.2 | 82.6 | 19.1 | 140.0 | 3.2 |
| Source: RAB, November 2002 | |||||
