A slump in local newspaper and television advertising is spreading to national categories, helping speed a Q2 decline in ad revenue in the U.S. of 1.5 percent, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.
That's the steepest slip since the company began tracking industry sales nearly six years ago, writes Bloomberg. Magazines dropped 10 percent in the quarter due to shrinking spending from food, pharma, toiletries and computer companies. Those categories account for 45 percent of broadcast TV advertising, so the slip may signal dire things to come for national TV, says analyst Michael Nathanson.
Despite strong political spending likely in the fourth quarter, shrinking advertising from categories such as auto - auto makers are expected to slash $3 billion in ad spending this year - could further hurt ad sales.
