Melbourne, Feb 16 (ANI): The popularity of men’s magazines seems to be taking a downturn, for health titles have emerged as a bright spot in the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations report.

The popularity has seen a major decline in the six months to December.

Healthy Food Guide emerged as the most popular with year-on-year sales of 24 per cent.

The second spot went to HealthSmart with up to 19 per cent sales, followed by Women’s Health with 15.3 per cent sales on the third.

Men’s Health came third with 10.7 per cent and followed by Diabetic Living with 9.6 per cent sales at fourth.

“The overall market for the six months to December 08 is exhibiting some early effects of the global economic crisis,” the Australian quoted NDD as saying.

“There is little good news in the market with so many negative results.

“The health and wellbeing sub-category has emerged as the main survivor,” he added.

Men’s magazines took a massive sales hit with the sales of FHM plummeting to 24.2 per cent, followed by Ralph with 22 per cent, and Alpha with 16 per cent reduction.

Popular fashion weekly Grazia’s sales slipped from 70,000 copies in the September quarter to 65,000 in the December quarter.

However, Lynette Phillips, publishing and sales director of ACP women’s lifestyle titles, said that she was pleased with its circulation.

“It has flattened out to a nice figure we can work on,” she said.

She predicted magazine sales had now bottomed.

“We were always going to be hit in women’s lifestyle because … that is reflective of consumer confidence,” she said.

“Year on year it doesn’t look good but period on period we’re really seeing it has now flattened out,” she added. (ANI)