WPP continued on its growth path in Q3 with year-over-year organic revenue up 3.8% in Q3, though that is behind the pace it has been setting for itself through the rest of the year.

While WPP was bolstered by its results, they are less than half of what it reported in the previous two quarters of 2022. The company cited factors in two of its biggest markets for the slowdown: the re-implementation of COVID-19 lockdowns in China, as well as comparison to Q3 2021, when it had a major pandemic-related contract assignment in Germany.

The company said its underlying growth was 4.8% when excluding the impacts of that contract. It also pointed out that it further improved on its three-year growth rate, and that Q3 organic revenue was up 10.9% compared to 2019.

In Canada, the company said its growth is continuing in line with previous quarters, with 7.7% year-over-year organic revenue growth in Q3. The market is also up 17.6% on a three-year basis.

Looking at its different divisions, GroupM had 4.7% organic growth, creative agencies had 4% organic growth and PR had organic growth of 5.8%. Specialist agencies, meanwhile, had a 3.9% decline.

Like his peers at other holding companies, CEO Mark Read cited investments in digital transformation and ecommerce for WPP’s growth path, as well as $1.7 billion USD in new business.

“Our new business success reflects the quality of our creative work, our strength in media and our ability to deliver integrated solutions to clients,” Read said. “We enter the last quarter of the year with confidence, based on the leading competitive position of our businesses, our client momentum and the knowledge that the actions we have taken to strengthen WPP leave us well placed to support our clients in navigating the economic uncertainties ahead.”

The company also updated its guidance slightly, now projecting between 6.5% and 7% organic revenue growth for the full year.