Sales of 'Irish Times' up 2.5% in six months

The Irish Times achieved an average daily circulation of 119,051 between July and December 2007, according to figures released yesterday by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC).

It was the only daily newspaper in the ABC's Island of Ireland report to show a rise in circulation compared to the same period in 2006. And the circulation gain - of 2.5 per cent or 2,949 copies a day compared to the six months from July to December 2006 - was also the biggest recorded by any national newspaper in the report.

The Irish Independent's circulation declined by 1.8 per cent or 2,878 copies a day to 160,854.

The Irish Examiner was also down. The Cork-based paper recorded a figure of 55,948 for the six months, down 0.9 per cent or 493 copies a day when compared with the same period of 2006.

The number of "actively purchased" copies of The Irish Times was 112,793 while discounted or bulk sales amounted to 6,258. This meant that 94.7 per cent of the circulation of The Irish Times was actively purchased.

The Irish Independent's "actively purchased" circulation was 140,419 - or 87.2 per cent - with the balance comprising discounted or bulk sales. Of its daily circulation, 89,293 were tabloid sales while 71,561 were broadsheets.

Within the Sunday paper sector, the Sunday World recorded the largest circulation, passing out its Independent News & Media (IN&M) stablemate the Sunday Independent in the process.

The Sunday World's circulation was 283,801, all of which were purchased at the full rate. This represented a 1.9 per cent year-on-year increase.

The Sunday Independent's circulation between July and December was 282,459, down 1.8 per cent or 5,291 a week on the previous year. The paper had discounted or bulk sales of 20,803 a week during the six-month period.

The Sunday Tribune , in which IN&M is an influential shareholder, increased its circulation by 1.1 per cent or 753 copies a week to 70,058. Just over 11 per cent of the Sunday Tribune's circulation is discounted or bulk sales.

The Sunday Business Post , owned by Thomas Crosbie Holdings, recorded a circulation of 53,871 between July and December. It added, on average, 11 copies a week to its sales.

The number of copies of the Evening Herald sold each day continues to decline. The Monday to Friday edition had an average circulation of 82,804 in the six month period, down 4.3 per cent year on year. The Saturday version sold an average 49,112 copies a week, down 1.9 per cent on the previous year. The Evening Echo in Cork had an average sale of 25,904, down 3.9 per cent year on year.

Some regional newspapers reported declines in circulation. The most notable was the 7.2 per cent drop by the Meath Chronicle , owned by Deirdre Romanes-controlled Celtic Media Group. It had an average circulation of 16,010.

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times