APAC Ad Spend 

February 2025
At the start of the new year, dentsu APAC's investment analysts provide ad spend forecasts for our dynamic but divergent region in the context of growth, modernization and continuing economic and political uncertainty. Fill in the form to get access to The Briefing, our market summaries and a new special section, the APAC Media Landscape.

Historical advertising spend figures have all been restated to constant April 2024 exchange rates. The full methodology is available here. 
 
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The Key Figures

The global advertising market is forecast to grow by $48.9 billion year-over-year to close 2024 at $772.4 billion.

This 6.8% growth projection has been revised up following the return to double-digit growth (+10.7%) of digital ad spend, the impact of sporting and political events, and improved outlooks across the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and France.

Global ad spend growth is forecast to continue at a slower 5.9% in 2025 but will still outpace the global economy by 2.7 percentage points.

Globally, growth is driven by continual advertising innovation. Algorithmically enabled ad spend is estimated to reach 59.5% of global ad spend in 2024 and 79.0% in 2027.

In Asia-Pacific, ad spend is projected to grow by 5.8% in 2025, trailing behind the Americas (+6.3%) and ahead of EMEA (+5.0%), likely due to a marked decrease in major events to boost ad spending this year.

Digital ad spend is expected to grow by 9.3% (vs 9.8% in 2024), to reach $171.6 billion in 2025. Programmatic will be the leading driver and is expected to expand by 23.6%, paid search by 3.9%, and paid social by 9.9%, bolstered by an integrated ecosystem.

Among the big 4 in Asia-Pacific (China, India, Japan and Australia), we will see fastest growth in digital ad spend from India (+20.2%), especially from paid social, video, and AI-driven ad placements.

APAC online video advertising is projected to increase by 4.6% in 2025. After overtaking broadcast television in Australia in 2023, it is now forecast to do the same in India by 2027.

APAC out-of-home is predicted to remain the most resilient traditional medium (+3.3% in 2025), thanks to continued traditional spend and the expansion of digital formats which are now a standalone solution in some markets.

Media & Entertainment (+9.9%), beverages (+9.9%) and travel and transport (+9.7%) are forecast to be the fastest growing sectors in 2025.

The Briefing

The APAC advertising market continues to show nuanced growth dynamics in 2025. With ad spending projected to accelerate compared to 2024 and to outpace global growth to reach $253 billion, the regional analysis reveals significant market variations and surprising drivers.

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Market Outlook

Asia-Pacific is expected to remain the most dynamic region. If you'd like to access our Market Summary to understand each of our 14 APAC markets on a deeper level as you plan your media investments across the region, then click on the button below. This is an exclusive report that is available upon special request. ​

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Media Landscape

The APAC Media Landscape provides a high-level yet comprehensive view on ever-evolving media consumption habits and digital trends that are likely to stick. Employing data from multiple sources in 14 countries, this APAC snapshot reveals the typical consumer in the region, covering channel, category and broad customer journey observations.

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For a deep dive into media consumption trends with your category or market, please contact your dentsu client partner.

Our Experts' Views: Spaces to Watch

Innovation is everywhere. Our experts weigh in on five spaces to watch for APAC advertisers to stay ahead of the curve as they reflect upon their marketing strategies. Read the articles to learn the experts’ view on the key trends to get ahead of in the region.

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The Rise of Ecosystems

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Social Commerce

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Audio Always the Bridesmaid

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