The decline in advertising at regional newspaper publisher Newsquest appears to be slowing.

In its results for the third quarter of 2009, published yesterday, American parent company Gannett said that overall ad revenue was down 28.7pc compared to the third quarter of 2008.

The fugures suggest that the recession’s impact on print advertising may be diminishing.

Results published in July showed that total ad spending in the second quarter of 2009 was down by 36.9pc compared to the same period the previous year.

The 28.7pc third quarter fall breaks down into retail (19pc), national (10.4pc) and classified (34.7pc).

The biggest hit of the classified sectors was employment, down 48.8pc, followed by automotive (37.4pc) and property (30.6pc).

Gannett year-on-year comparisons in classified advertising for the third quarter were the best so far in 2009.

Gannett chief executive Craig Dubow said: “We finished the quarter on a stronger note with better than anticipated results due primarily to better trends in advertising and greater efficiencies across all of our business segments.

“Our results for the quarter exceeded the high end of previously announced estimate ranges for revenue, operating cash flow and earnings per share.”