Advertising group WPP is bracing itself for another difficult year after seeing annual revenues and profits slide during 2002.
Pre-tax profits before financial write-downs were 44 per cent lower at £302.5 million sterling. In the face of the slowdown, WPP has cut staff numbers by 6 per cent to just under 50,000.
WPP's fortunes hinge greatly on global economic prospects and the group, which operates businesses including Oglivy & Mather and J Walter Thompson, forecasts flat like-for-like sales growth this year.
That comes after revenues slipped 3 per cent to £3.91 billion in the 12 months to December 31st, with the figure stripping out the impact of acquisitions and currency exchange movements down almost 6 per cent.
The group, which counts IBM, American Express and Unilever among its clients, says there has been a glimmer of progress after seeing its fall in revenues decelerate from 9 per cent at the start of the year to 3 per cent at the end.
WPP notes that its North American region achieved its first revenue growth in seven quarters in the fourth quarter but that the possibility of an Iraqi conflict had increased levels of uncertainty since then.
The final dividend has been increased 20 per cent to 3.67p.
PA