Brazil’s publishing sector sales grew 50% over last year in first half of 2021

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Brazilian publishing market sold 28 million books in the first half of 2021, an increase of 48.5% compared to the same period in 2020, according to a study released Wednesday by the National Association of Book Publishers (SNEL).

In total, between January and June this year, the sector invoiced R$1.19 billion (about US$228.8 million) from the sale of publications, 39.9 % more than in the first half of 2020.

In the latest period analyzed, which covers June and part of July, the book market had an “expressive” growth in sales compared to 2020. According to the study, 4.7 million copies were sold, almost double the 2.95 million books sold in the same period last year.

Publications classified as “specialist non-fiction” led sales in the first half of the year (29.53%), followed by fiction (25.57%), “commercial non-fiction” (24.79%), and children’s books (20.10%).

The recovery of the publishing market in Brazil began to be seen in September 2020 after the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, when book sales fell by half between March and April last year, as the country experienced the strongest restrictions to prevent the spread of the virus.

Covid-19 forced the temporary closure of physical stores in the country but reactivated the virtual market, preventing a greater decline.

According to the study conducted by Nielsen Book, under the coordination of SNEL, expectations for the second half of 2021 are promising for the sector, which closed 2020 in the red.

The publishing market in Brazil had a turnover of R$5.2 billion (about US$1 billion) last year, a drop of 8.8% compared to 2019.

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