Mail group happy with late 2007 results

Daily Mail and General Trust said today its results for the last three months of 2007were ahead of its expectations.

The group said revenue for the three months to the end of December - the first quarter of DMGT's financial year - was up 2% on the same period in 2006.

DMGT's national newspaper division Associated Newspapers, home to the Daily Mail and the London Evening Standard, saw revenue for the 13 weeks to December 30 rise by 2% year on year to £250m.

Circulation revenues were flat, while total advertising revenues were up 4% year on year, with print display up by 5% and classified down 9%. The largest display category, retail, grew 8%.

These positive trends had continued into January, DMGT said. Teletext remained "weak", while digital media arm Associated Northcliffe Digital grew strongly, the company added.

At DMGT's regional division, Northcliffe, revenues were down 0.3% year on year in the three-month period at £105m, including acquisitions and disposals made in the prior year.

This included a 90% increase in UK digital revenues, mainly in the recruitment category.

The DMG Information division saw revenues rise by 18% to £74m, while financial publisher Euromoney contributed £75m, up 6%.

Exhibitions division DMG World Media made £38m; while DMG Radio Australia, home to Australia's Nova stations, saw revenues rise by 27% to £13m.

Chris Tryhorn
The Guardian
6th February