Thailand, Singapore rebound from slump with '99 adex growth

<p>Forecasts are for even better times ahead for Thailand and </p><p>Singapore, where annual advertising expenditure in '99 grew nine per </p><p>cent and three per cent respectively over the previous year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Thailand's advertising industry continues to recover as total </p><p>billings for 1999 exceeded 41,568 million baht (US$1.1 billion), </p><p>up nine per cent from 1998, according to the Advertising Association of </p><p>Thailand (AAT). </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Press advertisements grew the fastest, up 39 per cent to 8,113 million </p><p>baht in 1999. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>AAT president Pornsiri Rojmeta predicted 2000 would be an even better </p><p>year for Thailand's industry, with growth between 10 and 15 per </p><p>cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>However, she hoped that growth would not be higher than predicted, </p><p>because that would be detrimental to the sector's future. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"I would hate to see growth figures jumping from between 28 to 32 per </p><p>cent each year like during the economic boom in Thailand. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"It was not good for the industry and affected the professional quality </p><p>of the industry as there was no time to train new staff," she said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>After experiencing negative growth for the first three quarters last </p><p>year, Singapore adspend picked up significantly in Q4, with a 21.8 per </p><p>cent increase over the same period in 1998. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>This brought overall growth for the whole year to nearly three per cent, </p><p>reaching a total of S$1.22 billion - in 1998, the market shrank </p><p>by seven per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Key players are re-evaluating their advertising investments for 2000 in </p><p>the light of deregulation and increased competition," said ACNielsen </p><p>Singapore/Malaysia managing director and chief client service officer </p><p>Lennart Bengtsson, who said the finance, Internet and telecommunications </p><p>sectors would "lead the charge into further recovery" this year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>OMD Singapore general manager Gan Boon Guan said the final result showed </p><p>a return to confidence among advertisers in the Lion City. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"There is improved optimism compared to a year ago, when everyone was </p><p>adopting a 'wait and see' attitude," he said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Gan said the entry of new brands into the market this year would </p><p>ensure even healthier growth in terms of adspend. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Telecommunications giant SingTel was the biggest advertiser of 1999, </p><p>recording S$39 million in adspend. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Direct competitor M1 spent S$20 million. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>With the Singapore government bringing forward to April the full </p><p>deregulation of the telephone market, the telecommunications sector is </p><p>poised for even more heated activity. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We have already seen some very aggressive advertising from StarHub in </p><p>print and radio since December, months ahead of its official launch in </p><p>April," said ACNielsen's Mr Bengtsson. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Several product categories in the top 10 rebounded strongly, registering </p><p>double-digit growth; these included retail, banking and investment, </p><p>computers, media, and pharmaceuticals. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>However, the property category remained soft, declining for the second </p><p>consecutive year to register a drop of S$15 million. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Newspapers saw six per cent growth and commanded a 50 per cent share of </p><p>the market; TV's share dropped three per cent to 33.6 per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Poster ads were the best performer in terms of growth, up 20 per cent </p><p>over 1998, edging share of market to three per cent. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Both magazines and radio also improved, splitting the remainder of the </p><p>adspend pie between them. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Internet companies in Singapore increased their advertising spend by 100 </p><p>per cent last year, compared with 1998, according to analysis provided </p><p>by OMD. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The total spend in this category was more than S$15 million, of </p><p>which a major portion went into a combination of television and print </p><p>advertising. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The top Internet advertisers were ISPs Singnet, Magix, Pacific Internet </p><p>and newcomer StarHub. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Together, they contributed to half of the total spend in this </p><p>sector. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Additional reporting by Tom Racette, Bangkok </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>THAI ADSPEND (1999 vs 1998 in Baht '000s) </p><p> Year -on-year </p><p>MEDIA 1998 1999 change (%) </p><p>TV 25,379,157 26,032,304 3 </p><p>Radio 3,386,429 4,111,365 21 </p><p>Press 5,851,401 8,113,059 39 </p><p>Magazines 2,083,382 2,011,947 -3 </p><p>Outdoor 1,220,135 1,042,385 -15 </p><p>Cinema 174,529 257,745 48 </p><p>ALL MEDIA 38,095,033 41,456,796 9 </p><p>Source: Advertising Association of Thailand </p><p><BR><BR> </p>