Revenue decreased 3.8% to €405.3m (£251.1m) in the second quarter, but the results marginally exceeded analysts' expectations. JCDecaux, the world's largest outdoor advertising company, also said the downturn in the European advertising market had hit revenues.
The outbreak of the SARS disease in the Far East contributed to a decline in transport revenues of 6.5%, falling to €135.1m. The airport and metro business in Hong Kong, the epicentre of the outbreak, were hit, but JCDecaux said there were signs of recovery in France, US, Spain, Portugal and Italy.
The company's street furniture division saw revenue decline by 2.2% to €408.2m, blaming depressed market conditions in Germany and the Netherlands, although it said that these were offset by growth in the UK, Spain, central Europe, the US and Australia.
The billboard sector was particularly affected by a challenging second quarter in the UK market, while in France it continued to achieve growth and outperform rivals. Revenue declined by 5.5% to €118.2m in the second quarter, resulting in a total decrease of 1.5% to €214.9m for the first half of the year.
Jean-Francois Decaux, chairman and co-chief executive officer, said: "Despite the difficult economic environment, revenues for the first half of 2003 are in line with our previous expectations. While trading conditions in Europe remain challenging, we are beginning to see some signs of a recovery in the US where we achieved solid revenue growth during the first half."
Organic revenue at the group was up by 1% to €785.1m.
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