Brexit Turmoil Drives Down UK Ad Spend Expectations
Slowdown to drag down overall growth in Western Europe
June 20, 2017
| Ad Spending
Citing a slowing UK economy, rising inflation and political uncertainty over midyear elections and upcoming Brexit negotiations, Zenith has pared back its expectation for UK ad spending growth in 2017.
Zenith’s revised forecast anticipates only a 0.9% increase in UK ad spending this year, far below 2016 levels.
Declining UK ad investment, paired with comparisons to a 2016 buoyed by ad outlays surrounding the UEFA Euro Cup soccer tournament, will have a domino effect on the greater European region’s spending picture. Zenith now forecasts the UK’s woes will slow the region’s spending growth to 2.2% in 2017, down from 4.5% in 2016.

The UK had been the leading growth market in the combined Western and Central Europe area from 2011 to 2016, expanding at an average of 7.3% a year by Zenith’s calculations.
eMarketer’s most recent forecast of UK total media ad spending, last updated in March 2017, anticipates a 5.5% increase this year, down from a 6.8% gain in 2016. Investment will be worth $25.37 billion (£34.24 billion).
—Cliff Annicelli
New Report in eMarketer PRO This Week
Using data collected from sensors, infrastructure and networked devices, smart-city projects are helping municipalities improve efficiency, boost sustainability and encourage economic development. They are also creating more collaborative environments among cities and their businesses and residents.
Preview Report
Not a PRO subscriber? Find out how to become one.