Global advertising spending is expected to grow far faster in 2025 than previously projected, helped by lighter-than-anticipated tariff impacts and a surge in investment in artificial intelligence, according to a new forecast cited by The Wall Street Journal and issued by WPP Media.
WPP Media now expects global ad revenue—excluding U.S. political advertising—to rise 8.8% in 2025, reaching $1.14 trillion. That is a sharp upgrade from the 6% growth it forecast in June, The Journal reported. The group also revised its 2026 prediction upward, now estimating 7.1% growth compared with its earlier 6.1% outlook.
Kate Scott-Dawkins, president of business intelligence at WPP Media and the report’s lead author, told WSJ that the softer-than-expected tariff impact helped marketers avoid deeper cuts. Companies mitigated the pressure by speeding up imports before tariffs took effect, managing inventory more aggressively, and absorbing part of the added costs. “The summer gave us a chance to see how those played out… to see how resilient consumer spending was… and to see what sort of arrangements were made that lessened the impact,” she said.
However, the report cautions that some tariff effects have merely been postponed and are likely to be felt more acutely in 2026.
AI investment has also played a significant role in the upgraded forecast. According to WPP Media, businesses are increasingly using AI to streamline operations—from marketing workflows to product development—and reallocating the resulting savings into advertising budgets. Meanwhile, the rapid expansion of AI-native companies has created a new wave of advertisers.
One of the most significant shifts highlighted in the report is the continued rise of retail media. Global retail-media revenue is expected to grow 11.3% to $174.2 billion in 2025, surpassing television advertising for the first time. TV ad spending—across broadcast, cable and streaming—is forecast to inch up just 0.6%.
