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Lagardere publishing growth "flat"

07.05.08 Anna Richardson

First quarter consolidated revenues at Lagardère SCA for 2008 were down 4.9% from 2007 at €1.8bn, but increased by 2.1% on a like-for-like basis (excluding changes in group structure and the effects of exchange rates), with the UK publishing division seeing "robust" growth in adult and children's fiction.

Overall, Lagardère's publishing division saw flat growth "in line with expectations" of just 0.5% to €413m during the first quarter. On a like-for-like basis, publishing revenues were up 2.4%. This growth was driven by strong sales for Hachette Book Group USA, the UK publishing houses and Illustrated Books in France, whereas the literature market in France remained "sluggish".

The company reported that the strong pace of growth at Hachette Book Group USA was maintained, boosted by James Patterson’s Maximum Ride series and by Stephenie Meyer’s books. In the UK, there was "robust growth in adult and children’s fiction". Its outlook was that "the market growth prospects for Lagardère Publishing were good".

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