The publisher, which suffered a €171.6m decline in revenues for the period to €608.8m, is in talks aimed at putting it back on a secure financial footing after it found itself unable to meet a €200m bond repayment due on 18 May.

INM's UK operations posted a pre-tax loss of €3.8m, down 180.9% on its €4.7m profit last year, coupled with a 28.5% drop in turnover, to €82.6m.

Gavin O'Reilly, chief executive officer of INM, described the group's revenue performance as "comparatively resilient" in light of the "exceptionally difficult business conditions".

However, the company was forced to issue a profit warning, with O'Reilly telling shareholders that the group's forecast operating profit for 2009 was likely to be at the lower end of the €180m to €210m range previously announced.

In further bad news for the struggling publisher, it revealed that on 30 June 2009 it had been unable to comply with certain covenant tests contained within its core bank debt facilities, rendering it in default.

However, INM, which has a further €50m bond repayment due on 30 September, has secured another extension to the "financial standstill" granted by its senior lenders, including a waiver of the 30 June default, to 25 September.

Unless a further amendment or waiver is granted by INM's lenders in advance of the end of the standstill, it will be in breach of its covenants.

The group is continuing with its asset disposal and cost reduction programmes and said that it expected to complete the €98m sale of its interest in South African outdoor media company INM Outdoor in Q4.