Regional advertising spending hit by turmoil - The National

Advertising spending in the Arab world declined by 10 per cent last year, according to one of the world's largest media groups.

Unrest in Egypt and Bahrain helped to drag down the multibillion-dollar industry, although markets such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE proved resilient.

Elie Khouri, the chief executive of Omnicom Media Group in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), dismissed a report released yesterday that suggested a slight rise in advertising spending last year.

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