Struggling FT resurfaces in the black at the end of 2004

by Daniel Farey-Jones,, Brand Republic 19-Jan-05, 11:00

LONDON – The Financial Times has ended its two-and-a-half year streak of quarterly losses by breaking even in the fourth quarter of 2004, according to a trading update from the FT's owner Pearson.

Pearson said that the FT had performed in line with expectations, which means that its 2004 results should show that it has cut its losses by around £20m on 2003.

Losses for 2003 stood at £32m on top of losses for 2002 of £23m, with the FT's performance exacerbated by the advertising downturn after the dotcom boom.

The latest of several cost-cutting measures at the FT was the closure of its media section Creative Business as a pull-out supplement in December. It became a monthly section within the paper, with no job losses, according to the FT.

Pearson's overall results produced few surprises, with Pearson Education performing in line with expectations and book publisher Penguin suffering in tough trading conditions.

Pearson expected "a significant acceleration" in its financial performance in 2005, driven by a strong outlook for its education business.

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