Trinity revenues fall on back of ad slump

NEWSPAPER group Trinity Mirror said today its annual revenues had been pushed 4.8 per cent lower to £1.03 billion as a result of "difficult" advertising conditions.

The owner of the Daily Record and the Sunday Mail added that pre-tax profits had dropped 13.8 per cent to £185.4 million in the year to the end of December.

The firm said the end of the fourth quarter had shown some signs of improvement in the advertising sector - although Trinity warned it was still "too early" to herald a turnaround.

Heavy cover price cutting among the Scottish tabloids forced Trinity to introduce discount vouchers to win reader loyalty, which had "impacted profits" but provided a strong basis for the future, the company said.

Sly Bailey, group chief executive, said: "We have completed a fundamental business review and come out of that with a clear road map for the group's future."

Advertising revenues for the nationals division fell by 10.2 per cent. Trinity said circulation of the Daily Record had dropped 7.4 per cent on last year - while the Sunday Mail's sales fell 4.8 per cent.

The company, which launched its evening Record PM titles in Edinburgh and Glasgow in August, later decided to axe the cover price.