Nielsen: Global ad spending up 4.3 percent

Global ad spending grew 4.3 percent during third quarter of 2012, outpacing the 2.7 percent gain seen during the first half of the year.

North America was up 10.2 percent during the quarter, paced by strong Olympic and political spending, while the Middle East and Africa continued to lead year-to-date spending, up 18.9 percent during the first nine months.

“The Olympics, a major media event in all parts of the world, and the U.S. presidential election helped drive investment up,” says Randall Beard, global head, advertiser solutions for Nielsen.

“We’ll be watching carefully to see if the growth was sustained in Q4 and into 2013, or if there’s a dip in comparison to this year.”

The increase marked the biggest gain for North American since before the recession began.

Asia Pacific was up 3.5 percent in third quarter, bringing it to a 2.7 percent growth rate for the first nine months of the year. China rebounded from two quarters of decline with a 3.1 percent gain in third quarter.

Western Europe continued to struggle, and in fact things got worse in third quarter. Spending was down 4.8 percent, nearly double the 2.7 percent decline seen during the first half of the year, as advertisers pulled back over fears about the debt situation.

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