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Profits boost for Trinity Mirror and Local World

Regional publisher Local World delivered an operating profit of £25.5m in its first year while Trinity Mirror also saw a profits increase, according to financial results published today.

Trinity Mirror’s annual results show pre-tax operating profits up 2.6pc to £101.3m during 2013.

The figures also reveal a strong performance by Local World in its first year of operation following the merger of Northcliffe Media and Iliffe News and Media.

Trinity Mirror said its 20pc share in Local World yielded a return of £5.1m, indicating an adjusted post-tax profit for the company of £25.5m although more detail will be announced by Local World in May.

Today’s results show TM’s overall revenues during the year fell 6pc to £663.8m.

However a report accompanying the results reveals costs were reduced by £38.5m during the year, helping deliver the improved profitability figures.

The profit figures refer only to operating profit and do not include the £225m write-off on the value of its newspaper assets as previously reported.

Trinity announced last month that it has written down the value of a series of regional titles purchased in the 1990s which are now worth substantially less than what it paid for them.

Today’s report said the market for its regional titles remained “difficult,” with average circulation declines for its regional dailies of 7.9pc, and 8.8pc for its paid-for weeklies.

The report says:  “For our regional newspapers, we believe our print advertising performance is broadly in line with market trends with the exception of recruitment where we have underperformed.”

It also highlights a series of recent initiatives including the launch of two new free weekly titles in Scotland, Aberdeen Now and Edinburgh Now, abailable free inside the Daily Record, and the launch of “more localised” editions of some of its flagship regional dailies.

These have included North and South editions of the Manchester Evening News, a Wirral edition of the Liverpool Echo and a county edition of the Chester Chronicle.

Chief executive Simon Fox said:  “Strong print and digital revenue trends at the end of 2013 enabled us to finish the year ahead of expectations.

“It is clear to me that our strategy for growth, which I outlined in March last year, is gaining momentum. I am particularly pleased with our rapidly growing digital audience and with the benefits we are driving in harnessing the combined strength of our national and regional titles.”

Commenting on Local World’s financial performance in 2013 as reflected in the Trinity Mirror report, its chief executive David Montgomery said: “We are delighted with our performance in our first year.

“Local World has delivered a strong profit and cash-flow performance and our revenues were in line with expectations. We will provide more detail in May when our accounts have been audited.”

3 comments

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  • March 13, 2014 at 10:05 am
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    Great. Can we have our staff back now?

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  • March 13, 2014 at 10:31 am
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    The Local World journalists think it’s fabulous that Monty has instigated a profit share scheme so everyone can share in the successes their efforts have helped to produce.

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  • March 17, 2014 at 11:13 am
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    Enough Is Enough – I asked, computer said no.

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