• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, August 7, 2003

Magazines Continue Positive Trend In June

Total magazine advertising revenue for the month of June increased 8.5% compared to June of last year according to Publishers Information Bureau (PIB). Ad pages for June were down 3.2% from last year. Year-to-date, advertising revenue closed up 9.9%, and ad pages were up 1.8% from last year.

June 2003 vs. June 2002

Seven of the 12 major advertising categories experienced growth in ad revenue over June 2002, while four of 12 recorded ad page growth. Automotive, Apparel & Accessories, Home Furnishings & Supplies and Technology saw increases in both revenue and pages in June 2003. (Twelve categories are the most significant contributors to PIB revenue, comprising more than 85% of total advertising spending.)

	2003 DOLLARS	%CHG 6/02-6/03	2003 PAGES	% CHG 6/02-6/03
AUTOMOTIVE	$221,427,148	25.2%	2,313.1	19.9%
TOILETRIES & COSMETICS	$174,458,987	7.6%	1,781.7	-1.3%
DRUGS & REMEDIES	$156,620,696	20.8%	1,434.7	8.6%
HOME FURNISHINGS & SUPPLIES	$154,741,258	24.5%	1,577.5	9.9%
FOOD & FOOD PRODUCTS	$122,103,768	-0.7%	991.0	-5.3%
TECHNOLOGY	$107,567,571	21.1%	1,264.9	5.4%
MEDIA & ADVERTISING	$93,523,578	10.3%	950.6	-4.5%
DIRECT RESPONSE COMPANIES	$79,039,037	-7.4%	1,304.0	-9.6%
APPAREL & ACCESSORIES	$71,653,895	1.3%	1,166.0	-20.0%
FINANCIAL, INSURANCE & REAL ESTATE	$65,570,124	-23.9%	816.7	-23.3%
RETAIL	$56,669,574	-6.6%	734.6	-23.6%
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, HOTELS & RESORTS	$51,096,613	-16.9%	937.1	-18.4%

Source: Publishers Information Bureau

January - June 2003 vs. January - June 2002

Nine of the 12 major advertising categories sustained dollar gains for the year-to-date comparison, while five of 12 saw growth in ad pages. Ad page and revenue increases were seen in Apparel & Accessories, Automotive, Drugs & Remedies, Home Furnishings & Supplies and Toiletries & Cosmetics.

	2003 DOLLARS	%CHG 6/02-6/03	2003 PAGES	% CHG 6/02-6/03
AUTOMOTIVE	$1,014,422,879	25.8%	11,051.6	22.2%
DRUGS & REMEDIES	885,150,732	22.9	8,207.3	17.1%
TOILETRIES & COSMETICS	812,093,778	12.8	8,470.6	6.6%
HOME FURNISHINGS & SUPPLIES	720,565,523	22.5	7,895.4	11.9%
FOOD & FOOD PRODUCTS	688,448,996	2.0	5,245.6	-3.2%
APPAREL & ACCESSORIES	585,293,261	13.5	10,103.3	2.1%
DIRECT RESPONSE COMPANIES	557,525,734	-1.5	8,665.8	-7.0%
TECHNOLOGY	515,594,672	4.1	6,365.9	-2.1%
MEDIA & ADVERTISING	506,703,508	4.7	5,423.2	-1.3%
RETAIL	414,681,892	6.5	6,337.6	-1.2%
FINANCIAL, INSURANCE & REAL ESTATE	384,745,430	-7.6	4,823.7	-10.8%
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, HOTELS & RESORTS	364,076,016	-0.5	6,736.2	-6.2%

Source: Publishers Information Bureau

"It's encouraging to see sustained revenue growth for several of the major categories in June," stated Ellen Oppenheim, Executive Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer, MPA. "Automotive, up for the past 12 months, remains the strongest category, with significant contributions by the big three American car manufacturers and several leading imports. Technology repeated last month's positive trend, thanks in part to increased spending by software, hardware and telecommunications companies. The softening in ad pages reflects the uncertain economic environment, as it is driven by economically sensitive categories such as Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts; Retail; and Financial, Insurance and Real Estate."

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