WPP reported an 8% revenue gain on a constant currency basis to slightly more than $7.6 billion for the first half of 2011, due largely to currently fluctuations that favored the British pound during
the period, the ad holding company said. Organic revenue growth, a key metric for the industry, which excludes acquisitions and currency fluctuations, was lower, but still up 6.1% for the half. That
was at the low end of the range of other holding company competitors for the same period. At the high end, Publicis Groupe reported 7.1% organic growth for the same period. The comparable figures for
Interpublic Group and Omnicom were 6.8% and 6.2% respectively. WPP's profit for the half was just over $428 million, up 61%. By region organic growth was strongest in the Asia Pacific, Latin America,
Africa, Middle East and Central Eastern Europe, where it was up 10.5%, and weakest in Continental Europe (2.9%). In North America it stood at 5.4%, slight better than the UK's 5.1%.
