View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. News
June 5, 2018

Johnston Press blames ‘extremely challenging’ market for 9 per cent drop in group revenues over first five months of 2018

By Freddy Mayhew

Yorkshire Post and i publisher Johnston Press has said its group revenues are down 9 per cent for the first five months of the year.

In a trading update for the period from 1 January to 31 May, the regional publisher said today the “trading environment remains extremely challenging”.

It said this had been “exacerbated in recent months by uncertainty around future paper costs and the impact of GDPR [General Data Protection Regulation] on digital advertising revenues”.

The group’s expectations for 2018 remain in line with the market, it said.

Johnston Press reported adjusted revenue down 4.5 per cent to £201.2m in 2017. Its full-year financial statement also revealed adjusted profit before tax was down 19 per cent to £14.2m over the year.

The group revealed in today’s update that it had £24.6m in the bank as of the end of May, but faces bond repayments of £220m this month.

A committee of bondholders was formed in November last year as part of a strategic review to consider options for restructuring or refinancing the debt.

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

Changes to the group’s pension scheme have been proposed, although it is understood that no agreement has yet been reached.

Johnston Press is one of the UK’s largest news publishers, with hundreds of regional publications from weeklies to dailies.

Picture: Johnston Press

Topics in this article :

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network