In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, senior managing director Fumio Oshima said: "The US and Europe are going to be the biggest areas of our growth this year."
The comments echo those of Dentsu president Yutaka Narita, who told employees at the beginning of 2002 that one of the group's five core objectives would be increased emphasis on global services to clients.
In the same speech, Narita said that Dentsu would be adopting generally accepted account standards in preparation for a possible listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
Dentsu floated on the Tokyo Stock Exchange late last year and now has funds to develop overseas partnerships. It already holds a 20% stake in B|Com3, the company that owns Leo Burnett and D'Arcy.
While it is the dominant force in the Japanese ad industry, controlling as much as 25% of adspend in the country, only 5% of its revenue comes from abroad, mainly from its other Asian offices.
If you have an opinion on this or any other issue raised on Brand Republic, join the debate in the .