Australian media agency spend in 2018/19 fell 1.4 per cent to $6.93bn, the first year on year decline since 2012/13, according to SMI data.

However, the company pointed out that last year's record spend was exceptional, encompassing the Financial Services Royal Commission, Commonwealth Games and various by-elections and state elections.

Despite lower business confidence, global political uncertainty and a tighter credit market post the Royal Commission, some media reported record growth: Digital (+2.7%), Radio (+1.7%) and Outdoor (+4.5%). 

Ten product categories also reported record expenditure levels in FY2018/19, led by the Political Parties/Unions category (more than doubling ad spend to $101.4 million due to the Federal Election) while Retail’s media investment moved above $700 million for the first time and Travel’s topping $400 million. 

June spend was back 1.5 per cent: Digital -1.9 per cent; Outdoor +7.3 per cent; metro TV up 1.8 per cent if SBS results removed to normalise for last year's Soccer World Cup. 

Digital Outdoor reached 53 per cent of the value of all Outdoor bookings last financial year, while in the traditional Digital media Video Ad Format ad spend moved beyond 20 per cent of the value of Digital inventory for the first time. 

SMI AU/NZ MD Jane Ratcliffe said the difficulties of the past financial year had resulted in an unusual situation where SMI was reporting lower demand for each of the June month, June quarter (-2.8 per cent) first half (-2.9 per cent) and also for the financial year period. 

"As SMI’s data history has shown, it’s very unusual for the Agency market to not grow and it’s taken an unprecedented number of negative events to deliver this knock. But we’re seeing numerous local and global issues come into play at the same time which have had the combined effect of significantly reducing business confidence and therefore ad spend,’’ she said. 

"At least in June we are starting to see improvement as the 1.5 per cent decline is the lowest reported since November last year when you exclude the month May given the abnormal Election impact that month."

In June, SMI reports record levels of ad spend for each of the Auto Brand, Retail, Insurance and Travel categories with those gains offset by large declines in ad spend among Gambling advertisers, the Domestic Banks and Food/Produce/Dairy categories. 

And for the financial year, apart from the Retail, Travel and Political Parties reporting record levels of ad spend this feat was also achieved by the categories of Automotive Brand, Consumer Electronics, Utilities and Home Furnishing/Appliances.