This comes as no surprise, not least because of the current financial turmoil. Publicis Chairman and Chief Executive Maurice Levy told French business paper La Tribune that he expected a “difficult fourth quarter…and a very difficult year 2009,” reports Reuters. He said that the advertising group—the world’s fourth largest—would reflect these difficulties when setting up budgets. He also said the group had available cash of 2 billion euros, which he called “superior to our needs.” Just days ago, the group’s subsidiary Zenith Optimedia downgraded its outlook for the 2008 global ad spend for the third time in the year.