WPP ups full-year guidance

28th Apr 2011 08:00

Despite tougher comparatives in the second half, advertising giant WPP has upped its guidance for the full year after a strong first quarter which saw revenues rise by 7%.Reported revenue jumped to £2.22bn in the first three months of the 2011, with North America, its largest market, growing by 7.1%. Meanwhile, profits and operating margins were said to be ahead of budget and well ahead of 2010."Revenues have continued to recover following the stabilisation in quarter one of last year and the sequential improvement in like-for-like growth in quarters two, three and four of 2010," the group said.As such, WPP has raised its targets for 2011 from a 5% like-for-like growth to 6%."In 2010 we were surprised at the speed of the recovery in the more mature markets of the United States and Germany and more traditional media, like free-to-air television. This pattern has continued into the first quarter of 2011," WPP added.However, operations in Western Continental Europe remain the most challenging, the group said, with sales in France and Spain the most affected. Japan is said to be the weakest market, with flat sales, "suffering from years of stagnation and now triple hit by the dreadful earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters."Meanwhile, the emerging markets are seeing the most growth, with Latin America growing revenues by 16.7% on a like-for-like basis. Asia Pacific showing a 13.8% growth, excluding Japan.In regards to the current (second) quarter, the group estimates that stronger growth in Asia Pacific and Latin America will offset slowing growth in the US.---bc