Pearson bears up in media gloom helped by ad revenue and Penguin

Pearson, the owner of The Financial Times, shook off the gloom that has been enveloping the media industry yesterday with forecast-beating results and an upbeat outlook.

The world's biggest education publisher posted operating profit up 38 per cent to £124m in the first half and said it was confident about its prospects for the rest of the year. Underlying sales rose 6 per cent to £1.97bn.

"In spite of the macroeconomic conditions, we are on track to make further progress on our financial goals, and our strong trading performance has increased our confidence in the full-year outlook," the company said in its results announcement.

Pearson makes two-thirds of its full-year revenue and profit at its education business. Underlying sales at the division rose 4 per cent and the business made a small profit, rare for the first half. The operation's performance is heavily weighted to the second half, when the start of the academic year boosts sales.

The FT Group, which accounts for almost all advertising revenue, increased underlying sales by 8 per cent and operating profit by 15 per cent. Marjorie Scardino, the chief executive, said The Financial Times had not suffered from the slumping advertising revenues that are hitting the rest of the media industry. Ads for luxury goods had held up well and the paper's international markets had withstood the US credit crunch, she added.

Penguin, the publisher also owned by Pearson, increased profit by 28 per cent to £26m, boosted by sales of Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth and Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks.

Pearson shares rose 1.9 per cent to 606.50p. Its statement failed to lift shares of publishers Thomson Reuters, heavily weighted to financial services, and Reed Elsevier.