Further to my posting just below this, some figures from each side of the Atlantic that make the point about the nature of the crisis. First, America, courtesy of Alan Mutter. The value of 11 US newspaper companies traded on the public market since 2005 fell by a combined $23.7bn (£12bn) in the first half of this year, dropping almost as much in six months as they had in the three previous years put together.
It means that the companies have lost a cumulative $49.7bn (£24.9bn) in market capitalisation since December 2004, vaporising 51% of shareholder value. His full posting is here.
Second, Britain, courtesy - in part - of Mark Sweney's story, More turmoil for media stocks. Looking only at the newspaper share prices, and updating Mark's piece, here's how they stand this evening:
Trinity Mirror, 95.25p, down 12.6% on the day, meaning that the company is now worth £245.54m (compared to £1.46bn last year). Today's fall followed a downgrading from buy to sell by an analyst at Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander.
Johnston Press: 46.75p, down 10% on the day and 84% in the past year.
Daily Mail & General Trust: 298.5p, down 4.8% on the day, setting a new 52-week low.
Evidently, there's no need to panic. The Daily Telegraph's City pundit Questor tells us that "these stocks are nearing their nadir and potentially a couple of years away from offering considerable rewards." So investors are counselled to hold on until later this year, when buyers can "start thinking about long-term rewards."
I think Questor, who operates for a privately-owned paper that is known for its bloodletting, should think about taking a rest in a dark room.
