Media company Havas SA posted a 40% profit increase in the first half of the year. Last month, its chief executive Fernando Rodes Vila warned that the company was preparing for “more fragile economic times ahead,” the Wall Street Journal reports. Similarly, Aegis Group PLC, a major ad buyer, said its profits were up 17% in the first half. Its chief executive, Robert Lerwell, said: “We anticipate a lower rate of market growth than in the first half and are therefore taking some early steps to tighten our cost base in a number of markets,” according to the paper.
—Sergio Ibarra