By: Jennifer Saba Finally newspapers are reaping some of the good fortune of a growing economy, as national advertising rose 8.1% for 2003 -- totaling $7.8 billion. It's the biggest percentage increase the industry has seen in three years.
"The solid 2003 growth in total newspaper ad spending bodes well as we look forward into 2004," said John Sturm, president and CEO of the Newspaper Association of America in a statement released today.
Total ad spending for the full year was up 1.9% from 2002 at $44.9 billion, according to the NAA. Advertising expenditures for the fourth quarter of 2003 totaled $13.1 billion -- a 2.6% increase over the same period last year.
National advertising contributed to the lion's share of the fourth quarter total with $2.1 billion, a 7.5% increase from the previous year. According to the NAA, the boost comes mainly from the telecommunications and motion picture industries.
Retail advertising inched up 1.7% because of furniture, building material, apparel and accessory store ads. After a slump in the first three quarters of last year, classified ads also jumped 1.7% to $4.8 billion for the fourth quarter due to a push in real estate ad spending. Automotive and recruitment ads decreased 1.8% and 1.4%, respectively.
Correction: Advertising expenditures for the fourth quarter of 2003 totaled $13.1 billion, not $1.3 billion as this story originally reported.
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