Australian ad spend has finished the 2025-26 financial year back 2 per cent year-on-year, despite returning to the black in May and June, according to new data from Guideline SMI. Bookings in June were up 0.3 per cent year-on-year and, SMI said, are likely to strengthen further as late digital bookings are processed. For the six months to June, overall ad spend is up 0.4 per cent against the same period last year, with Digital, Outdoor, Cinema and Newspapers all in growth. Over the full financial year, Digital ad spend grew 2.4 per cent, with Social Media showing similar gains. Insurance recorded the strongest financial -year growth among the major advertiser categories, up 14.5 per cent against the previous comparable period.