Trinity Mirror ups the divi but warns over cost cuts

Trinity Mirror had good news for shareholders on Monday, with a rise in the dividend, but bad news for staff.

The publisher behind the famed tabloid and scores of local papers said it was upping its cost saving target for the year from £15 million to £20 million.

Some of that extra £5 million is bound to come from job losses.

Chief executive Simon Fox said: “Unfortunately in an environment where print is declining we have to manage the cost base.”

The company will “keep looking for efficiencies” he said. In the half year, revenues fell nearly 15% to £320 million, though there was one week fewer in the reporting period than a year ago.

Profit dropped from £67 million to £61 million, but Trinity is the UK’s most-profitable newspaper publisher, said Fox.

The dividend goes up 7% to 2.25p a share.

Fox said cashflow should be distributed but: “We are one of the few companies that consistently puts far more into pensions than we give to shareholders.”

The staff pension deficit fell by £59 million to £407 million.