Advertising stocks boosted by Buffett's Omnicom stake

LONDON - Shares in UK advertising groups were rising this morning following the disclosure that Warren Buffett, one of the world's most influential investors, owns 500,000 shares in the Omnicom Group.

This morning, shares in rival advertising company WPP Group were trading up 6%, or 26.25p, at 465.75p, against a 0.93% gain on the FTSE-100 index.

Other agency groups to benefit from the boost were Aegis, owner of the Carat media-buying network, up 6.6%, or 4.75p, to 76p; and Cordiant Communications, trading up 5.62% at 43.5p.

Chime Communications also rallied somewhat after yesterday's disastrous 74% plummet following a trading statement. The company, owner of the HHCL & Partners advertising agency and Bell Pottinger public relations network, regained 16.43% of its share price to trade at 14.75p.

In the US, Omnicom Group shares rose by 11.17% or $6.66, to close at $66.31. Even shares in the Interpublic Group of Companies felt the cheer, rising by 6.44% to $13.39. On Wednesday, Interpublic said it would miss earnings forecasts by a long way and that it was delaying publishing detailed results until November 19.

Warren Buffett is considered an investment guru and is one of the richest men in the world. A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission disclosed that Geico, the car insurance unit of Buffett's company Berkshire Hathaway, owned the Omnicom shares.

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