The Status of Books in Italy and Europe in 2022: trade publishing reaches €1.701 billion in sales at cover price with 115.6 million copies ,up 16% and 18% respectively compared to the 2021
In the second year of the pandemic, trade publishing (print fiction and non-fiction books sold in physical bookshops, online and through major retail chains) reaches €1.701 billion in sales at cover price, with 115.6 million copies (18 million more than in 2020), up 16% and 18% respectively compared to the previous year.
Italian publishing still ranks sixth in the world (after the USA, China, Germany, the UK and France) and fourth in Europe.
The 16% growth of the Italian market (trade) is second in Europe, ahead of Germany and the United Kingdom, and behind only France, recovering after the drop in 2020, and Spain. In 2021, there were 85,551 new print releases, up 22.9% compared to the previous year.
The data were presented on the final day of the XXXIX Specialisation Seminar at the Scuola per Librai Umberto ed Elisabetta Mauri.
The European book: world leadership
The European publishing market is worth €33 billion: 60% of the global market and 6 of the 10 major international publishing groups are European. 4 of the Big 5 in the USA are also European.
How the trade market fared in 2021. Italy compared to certain European countries:
- France +20%
- Spain +20%
- Italy +16%
- Norway +9%
- Poland +9%
- Netherlands +8%
- Austria +4%
- Germany +3%
- Uk +3%
Cover prices of books sold are falling
Cover prices of books sold are falling (€ 14.72):
- -2,4% compared to 2020 (€ 15.08)
- -1,7% compared to 2019 (€ 14.19)
The number of books published is growing again
The number of books published is growing again, surpassing 2019 figures:
- 85,551 new releases published in 2021
- +22.9% compared to 2020 (69,608)
- +16.0% compared to 2019 (73,745)
