THE Athens Olympics, European Football Championships and next year's US Presidential election are expected to improve the lot of advertising group WPP this year.

The group, which includes American Express, Ford, IBM and Unilever among its clients, has stuck by hopes for a market recovery next year as it reported lower revenues and profits in the first half of this year.

WPP said its performance mirrored more stable conditions in the US and continued trading pressure in the UK.

Revenues during the six months to June 30 fell two per cent to £1.91bn - unchanged on a like-for-like basis - while profits before one-off exceptional items slipped almost five per cent to £202.9m.

At the bottom line, pre-tax profits fell to £153.6m from £173.7m a year earlier, although the London company still increased its half-year dividend by 20 per cent to 2.08p a share.

Including the recently acquired Cordiant business, WPP has about 69,000 full-time staff in 1,700 offices worldwide.