OPINION: Newspaper Advertising Trends Indicate Individuality of Utah Economy.

Byline: Scott Trundle

Dec. 31--You might say, what's a newspaper publisher's economic forecast doing among such business heavyweights as today's other guest columnists?

Well, the Standard-Examiner is a local marketplace, a barometer of economic activity. On our pages rank and file local businesses and individuals promote their goods and services every day to nearly 170,000 readers in the six-county Top of Utah region.

In 2000 we ran 58,704 auto, 60,159 real estate and 91,808 employment advertisements. These results beat the previous record year of 1997, and the softer 1998 and 1999. Advertising budgets pretty much mirror business performance. …