London and San Francisco – Facebook’s average Cost per Thousand impressions (CPM), an indicator of what Facebook earns per ad served, has increased by a significant 58 percent over the last 12 months, since the second quarter in 2011.

This was revealed in the latest Global Facebook Advertising Report compiled by TBG Digital and verified by the University of Cambridge. It is the latest report examining the trends and changes in the performance of Facebook campaigns managed by TBG Digital, which for the first time, now includes actual values for costs and performance metrics.

The study which was based on 406 billion impressions in more than 190 countries for 276 clients from Q2 2011 to Q2 2012, demonstrates that Facebook is not only earning more from advertising, but that ad engagement has reversed its downward trend. The increase in CPM of 58 percent can be attributed to a greater use of Sponsored Stories as well as the introduction of the highly anticipated mobile ads which also provide Facebook with higher earnings.

Cost per Click (CPC), the cost paid by advertisers to Facebook, has hit the dollar mark for the first time in the US and Canada, which saw a rise of 13% and 12% respectively. However, European territories UK, France and Germany saw a reduction in CPC. The UK fell 2% to $0.91.