SPH's newspaper, magazine ad revenue dropped 4.3% to $198m

Even circulation revenue dipped.

According to OSK DMG, print business continues downhill trend.

SPH’s newspaper and magazine ad revenue decreased by 4.3% y-o-y to SGD198m due to weakness in the property and transport segments while circulation revenue fell 2.3% to SGD50.7m.

Here's more from OSK DMG:

We think the outlook for print remains muted with the Government’s moderate GDP growth expectations of 1%-3% for 2013. 

Property segment remains the bright spot. Property rental revenue grew 3% y-o-y to SGD50.2m on higher rates from Paragon, while income growth from Clementi Mall was stable.

The injection of Clementi Mall and Paragon into the soon-to-be listed SPH REIT has its perks, such as cash inflows as well as a special dividend of 18 cents which will boost the Group’s FY13 yields to 9.7%. However, we remain concerned over a potential earnings dilution.