Trinity Mirror ad revenues rise

Daily Mirror publisher Trinity Mirror said today its advertising revenues had grown marginally year on year in the 10 months to the end of October.

"Whilst the advertising environment remains volatile month on month we are encouraged by the trends that are emerging," the firms finance director, Vijay Vaghela, told a Morgan Stanley investor conference in Barcelona.

"The board is confident that our 2007 performance will be in line with our expectations."

Mr Vaghela said group advertising revenues for the 10 months to the end of October were up 0.1% on a like-for-like basis, reflecting a decline of 1.5% for the first six months of the year and an increase of 2.7% for the four months to October.

The best performance was at the national titles - the Daily Mirror, the Sunday Mirror, the People, the Daily Record and the Sunday Mail. Advertising revenues at the nationals were up 0.9% in the 10 months to October, an improvement on a 2.3% decline in the first six months of the year.

The company's regionals division - home to papers such as the Liverpool Echo, the Birmingham Post and the Evening Chronicle in Newcastle - saw advertising revenues remain flat for the 10-month period, after 1% decline in the first half.

Circulation revenues across the group were up 0.8% for the 10 months to October, with a 0.9% rise at the nationals and 0.6% for the regionals.

Last month Trinity called time on a disposal programme that yielded just £263m from an original target of £600m, after its papers in the Midlands were withdrawn from the market and the sale of the Racing Post and other assets raised less than expected.

The company is to publish another trading update on December 13.

Chris Tryhorn
The Guardian
15th November