Election and Olympics spend cause Carat to double Aussie ad spend outlook for 2016

Media agency group Carat has more than doubled its predictions for ad spend growth in Australia this year, citing the 12-week Federal election campaign as a key driver of the growth.

In its previous update in March, the Dentsu Aegis-owned agency pegged Australian growth at just 2.5% for the year, but its September update puts it at 5.4% with digital cited as the biggest growth medium.

However, the overall Asia Pacific region, which Australia falls under, has seen its growth predictions slashed from 4.4% to 3.9% with conservative growth in China cited amongst factors contributing to a “new normal economic landscape”.