WPP Media cuts 2025 ad spend predictions in response to tariff uncertainty

Meanwhile, in a galaxy far, far away from the parent company, WPP Media has downgraded its forecasts for global ad spend growth by 1.7%, a consequence of clients responding en masse to U.S. President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade wars.

According to the agency group’s latest biannual forecast report, global advertising investment will rise 6% this year to $1.08 trillion, down from the 7.7% projected in December 2024. Future projections were also downgraded; the company now projects a global compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4% between 2025 and 2030. Previously, it had charted growth of 6.4% over the next five years.

Fear of a potential economic hit from Trump’s tariff policies, rather than responses to real impacts, had so far been the main driver of client spending shifts, said Kate Scott-Dawkins, president, business intelligence at WPP Media. “Uncertainty is the key thing,” she added. 

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