Daily Mail is expected to post a drop in full year profits

The company behind the Daily Mail is expected to post a drop in full year profits.

Analysts will be concerned about falls in advertising revenues when the Daily Mail & General Trust releases its figures on Thursday.

David Baldry of Gerrard expects circulation revenues to have held up well.

Baldry says the full year figure pre-tax figure, before one-off costs, will be £165m. This compares to £187m last time.

He adds that both the Mail and the Mail on Sunday have managed to grow their circulations while raising their cover price.

He commented: "The regional newspapers are more dependent on advertising revenues, in particular classified advertising."

Mr Baldry expects the strong growth of recruitment advertising in the first half to have slowed. Other classifieds, such as autos have been performing poorly, with revenues falling.

Euromoney, which is 71% owned by the company, recently reported full year results in line with expectations.

Mr Baldry adds: "An important focus for analysts is the outlook for advertising revenues and they will be keen to gain any information that may provide greater visibility."