Johnston Press, the regional newspaper group which publishes more than 300 regional and local papers including the Scotsman, the Yorkshire Post and the Sheffield Star, today announced a 4.8% fall in profits.

The group reported a fall in operating profit to £96.7m with revenue up 0.1% at £312.8 million in the half-year to June 30.

Profits were down on the previous set of six-monthly figures which saw a profit of £101.6m, and the figures were slightly below the market expectation due to a fall in advertising revenue over the period by 1.5%.

In the UK property advertising was the only category to show growth while employment and motors continued to fall.

Revenue from UK newspaper sales increased by 0.5% driven by selective cover price increases that compensated for reduced circulations.

There was also good news: the growth in advertising revenues in the Republic of Ireland grew by 10%.

"The month of July has seen a continuation of the improving month-on-month advertising trends in the UK," chief executive Tim Bowdler said in a statement.

"Costs remain under good control and new publishing initiatives, especially in the digital area, continue to produce strong growth, albeit from a small base. We anticipate a satisfactory outcome for the year as a whole".

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