Seven CEO James Warburton has forecasted an earnings drop for the rest of the 2020 financial year amid a tough advertising market and weak Australian economy.

Warburton announced Seven is expecting to hit the lower end of its full year underlying EBIT of between $190 million and $200 million.

The 2018-19 financial year saw Seven round off the year with an underlying EBIT of $212 million.

Seven grew to a 39 per cent revenue share in the first quarter of 2019-20, but in a down market.

Warburton said: “The market remains short and difficult to predict but we expect further softness in the second quarter. We are now forecasting the metropolitan television market to be down mid-single digits for the financial year.”

He said the previous financial year was a challenging time from an advertising markets perspective, “driven by political uncertainty, the impact of the royal commission on financial services advertising spend and generally subdued economic conditions.”

Yesterday, Nine also revealed its first-half earnings will be down by 10 per cent, blaming the results on slow market condition and the Alan Jones advertiser boycott, as well as a “shift in earnings contribution” attributed to the Fairfax merger.

Nine CEO Hugh Marks said: “The current advertising market conditions will mean that our first half result is now expected to be approx. 10 per cent down on pcp (prior corresponding period).”

However, Nine does not expect the pain to last too long.

“Notwithstanding, with the expectation of growth in linear FTA share, further growth in 9Now and Stan, a pick-up in activity at Domain and early synergies from Macquarie Radio, we are expecting this shortfall to be more than made up in the second half,” Marks said.