News

Global ad spend grows by 3.1% in Q1 2012

Global ad spend increased by 3.1% year-on-year to $128bn in Q1 2012, spurred on by emerging markets according to Nielsen’s quarterly Global AdView Pulse report.

The Midddle East and Africa saw a 23.3% increase in ad spend, with a particular jump in Egypt which saw growth of 67% following on from last year’s Arab Spring. Latin America is also proving attractive to marketers and saw a 9.6% year-on-year increase in ad spend.

Europe is still displaying signs of recession due to the ongoing Eurozone crisis with ad spend declining by 1.4% driven by Greece and Spain which saw the most significant drops. France, Germany and Switzerland however did see increased ad spend over the quarter compared to the same period last year.

North America and Asia Pacific showed the smallest growth with 1.7% and 2.1% respectively.

Despite the current growth, Nielsen suggests that the an increase in ad spend may be a result of the political unrest and hostile market conditions in 2011 which saw ad spend decline, as opposed to any significant increase in marketer confidence.

David Hing, London