Financial Times owner Pearson said today that a recovery in the advertising market was continuing but revenues remained unstable.
It said advertising revenues at the FT, which were down 4% at the beginning of March, were now level with last year and forward bookings were a little ahead.
Advertising revenues in the FT Group remained volatile from week to week, although the overall trend continued to improve.
Pearson, which also publishes text books and novels, said its businesses were trading in line with expectations and it expected a significant pick-up in its financial performance next year.
Pearson said it expected the FT Group to make progress this year, with another strong performance from its US-listed financial information provider Interactive Data Corporation and cost cutting in its business newspapers.
Efficiency measures in the FT Group have included the merger of its UK and European commercial operations and job losses, although a spokeswoman declined to give details. Since 2000, the FT has reduced costs by around £100m.
Pearson said its Penguin publishing division had made an encouraging start to the year, although it faced tough comparisons after a record 2003, with reported results set to be affected by the weak US dollar.
