A slowdown in advertising demand also did not hurt MPB’s profit before tax which increased seven per cent to RM159.3 million in 2008 due to improved operational results of its associate company - The New Straits Times Press (NSTP) and lower finance cost.
MPB’s investment arm Media Fund however saw current year losses, incurred by its Philippine investment that resulted in the media conglomerate recording a lower net profit of RM86 million.
“We are pleased to be able to deliver a commendable financial performance despite the difficult market conditions especially in the second half of 2008. MPB has shown that with its wide array of strong media assets, we are resilient enough to deliver strong growth in revenue and maintaining our profits”, said YBhg Dato’ Abdul Mutalib Datuk Seri Mohamed Razak, MPB’s chairman.
“However, we note the advertising spending outlook going forward will continue to remain soft and uncertain which will affect our future financial performance, but we are hopeful with our range of media assets we will be able to navigate through these challenging times.”
Abdul Rahman Ahmad, MPB’s group managing director and CEO, added, “2008 was a year of two halves where we recorded strong growth in advertising and earnings in the first half of the year but later were affected by the slowdown in advertising spending. But our strategy to diversify into other media assets such as radio and outdoor advertising has successfully enabled us to maintain a strong, stable and profitable revenue base.”
“For 2009, we are determined to ride out the current economic situation by stringently controlling costs and optimizing revenue growth opportunities while offering creative, innovative and cost effective solutions to advertisers to help their business during this period.”
