Rupurt Murdoch’s publisher News Corp set to cut 1,250 jobs

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp has said it will cut 1,250 jobs, around 5% of its workforce, after inflation cut into profits at the media giant.

The publishing company, which owns The Times and Sun newspapers in the UK, missed earnings expectations for the latest quarter.

Robert Thomson, chief executive of News Corp, said: “Obviously, a surge in interest rates and acute inflation had a tangible impact on all of our businesses.

“But we believe these challenges are more ephemeral than eternal.

“Just as our company passed the stress-test of the pandemic with record profits, the initiatives now underway, including an expected 5% headcount reduction, or around 1,250 positions this calendar year, will create a robust platform for future growth.”

It is unclear how much the proposed cuts will impact its UK workforce.

It is the latest publisher to cut roles after UK rival Reach, which owns the Mirror and Express titles, revealed plans to cut 200 roles last month.

News Corp, which also owns Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones and book publisher Harper Collins, revealed that revenues dipped by 7% to 2.52 billion US dollars (£2.08 billion) over the three months to December 31, compared with a year earlier.

The slump was attributed to negative currency changes, as well as lower book sales revenues and weakness in its real estate services business.

It recorded net income of 94 million dollars (£77.7 million) for the quarter, compared with 262 million dollars (£216.7 million), in the same period the previous year.