June newspaper market a damp squib

The inclement conditions appeared to have an affect on what was expected to be a bumper month, owing to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the Euro 2012 football tournament.

The midmarket was the only sector that marked a slight circulation increase in the period, likely thanks to its heavy coverage of the Jubilee. The circulation of the daily editions of the Mail and Express combined were up 0.52% month on month, while their Sunday titles posted a 1.39% increase.

The tabloid sector, which traditionally circulates more copies around high profile football tournaments, was down 0.74% month on month.

Market leader, The Sun was down 1.08% to 2.58 million copies. The title is down 7.65% year on year.

Its Sunday edition continues to shed readers since its launch in February and is down 2.33% month on month to 2.19 million. News International told Marketing Week in March it had ambitions for the title to maintain a consistent circulation of about 3 million.

Elsewhere, the majority of titles in the quality market also suffered dips in circulation.

The Guardian, which in June restructured its marketing department, was down 1.49% to 211,511. The paper is down 17.75% year on year.

The i newspaper appears to be settling into an average circulation of around 270,000 after a series of month on month increases since its launch last year. The title was down 0.71% to 272,592, but is still up 61.83% year on year.

The Times was the only paper in the quality sector to report a slight month on month circulation increase and was up 1.1% to 400,130. Its Sunday equivalent, however, was down 0.9% to 915,989.