The Echo in Essex has become the latest newspaper to bring its edition times forward in a bid to boost sales.

Research has shown that casual sales of the paper – which has editions covering Basildon, Southend and Castle Point – are increasing, and it will now be on sale from early in the morning to meet demand.

The change means the paper will be printed overnight and the three geographical editions will be on the streets by around 7.30am.

They had previously been on sale at around 9.30am, with a second later edition published for Southend.

The Echo currently has a circulation of 36,988, down 2.9 per cent on the previous year.

Editor Martin McNeill told HoldtheFrontPage that it had not been marketed as an evening paper for the past three years.

He said: “The deadlines on the Echo have been moving earlier and earlier over a period of years in common with papers up and down the country.

“We have now taken the step to print in the early hours of the morning in order to meet demand from readers who want to buy the paper as early as possible.

“In recent years the Echo’s retail sale has been healthy thanks to early availability and we have taken the next logical step.

“We are giving readers the best possible local papers and are totally committed to local editionalising in Southend, Basildon and Castle Point.

“The new schedules mean we no longer have journalists in the office from as early as 5.30am.”

Across the industry traditionally evening newspapers have been moving edition times forward, with Newsquest stablemates the Bolton Evening News and Lancashire Evening Telegraph due to begin printing overnight later this month.

Edition changes have also recently been made to the Oxford Mail, Swindon Advertiser and The Press at York.