However, the prediction, made in a research note issued by investment bank JP Morgan, is slightly less than the 2%-3% being forecast by other analysts.
JP Morgan has said while TV and radio are showing strength, outdoor, online and print remain weaker. Analyst Spencer Wang is reported to have pointed to the TV upfronts season as an encouraging sign. These were 22% ahead of sales for the same period last year.
Wang has forecast a 5% growth in broadcast television network advertising; a 6% or 7% rise in local television advertising; and a 4%-5% increase in radio advertising.
However, the forecasts could collapse if war breaks out with Iraq. Yesterday, Maurice Levy, chairman and CEO of Publicis Groupe, warned that any war could affect consumer confidence and the world economy, making predictions about an advertising recovery meaningless. He made the warning during its interim results presentation, when the French ad group said that its profits were up by 2% for the first half of the year to €194m.
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