Previously resilient advertising giant Publicis has been hit with a marked slowdown in its growth following a contraction in the ad market across northern Europe; notably Germany and Britain.
This saw Publicis post third quarter sales of just $2.11bn, representing organic growth of 2% - well below its 4.1% target and even disappointing analysts who had penned in growth of 2.9%.
Maurice Lévy, chairman and chief executive officer of Publicis Groupe, said, "This was a summer of contrasts: the upward trend continued through July and August, then September brought a sudden downturn in the economies of Europe. While southern Europe has seen a steady decline in advertising markets, starting in September, northern Europe suffered downturns as severe as they were sudden.
“Publicis has done well in achieving organic growth of 2%, although this falls short of earlier expectations. While July and August performances were in line with expectations, September bore the full brunt of budget cuts triggered by the marked downturn in economies."
Publicis isn’t the only big name to batten down the hatches, rivals Omnicom and WPP have also issued their own growth warnings.