Paul Harris via Unsplash
The current uncertainty around global politics is causing Australian brands to be more cautious.
As local businesses grapple with shifting trade policies and economic swings, some marketing activity has slowed, according to industry sources.
One source told AdNews two pitches their agency was involved with were put on pause because those companies, which are expanding into the US, are waiting to see how the country's new tariff laws will affect their Australian business.
Another source said an international client is considering moving its factories from China and Mexico to the US in response to the tariff laws, as a result the company remains hesitant on marketing activity.
Other clients have extended current agency contracts as they learn what the ripple effects of international policies mean for their local business.
Market analysts have started revising downwards advertising spend forecasts for the US as the Trump administration goes ahead with raising tariffs.
IPG’s Magna cited a “decline in confidence” and a lack of economic visibility which may impact marketing and advertising budgets in the short term.
Magna analysis now puts advertising revenue growth at 4.3% in 2025, down from the previous forecast of 4.9%.
WARC has downgraded its 2025 forecast for global advertising spend by nearly $US20 billion, to 6.7% due to growing market volatility.
Changes in trade policies can see short-term investment decline by about 4% in the US and China and about 2% in the Eurozone and U.K, according to Oxford Economics.
If business uncertainty persists, cumulative investment reductions could reach between 10% and 20% over several years, hampering global economic growth.
There is a lot of business disruption going on, TrinityP3 founder and CEO Darren Woolley said.
“But none of that has impacted us from the point of view of having to stop or pause the pitch,” Woolley told AdNews.
“Certainly there's a lot of conversations with clients who have extended their contracts for 12 months or six months, but no one has actually started to pitch to then stop or pause the process.
“There is a lot of uncertainty in the market, economic uncertainty driven by tariffs, which is driving businesses to rethink their business models, so things like pictures come secondary to those bigger business decisions.”
Enth Degree CEO Graham Webster said none of his clients have been impacted by developments in the US.
“We have not seen a slowdown in pitching. Quite the opposite really. We are finding the market quite buoyant,” Webster told AdNews.
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