The average price of new releases in bookstores has increased by around 9% since the pre-pandemic year of 2019. It rose from $21.57 to $23.42 in 2022, according to data obtained by The Press with the Banque de Titres de Langue Française, which aggregates data from some 300 points of sale.
Posted yesterday at 10:39 a.m.
For the whole of Quebec literary production, largely subsidized, the increase in selling prices reached 10% in three years. The average outlay for a new book has fallen from $19.52 in 2019 to $21.49 in 2022.
The increase posted for international works is more modest, at 7.6%. The average price per copy was $23.44 before the pandemic compared to $25.23 today.
It should be noted that the price of paper, a raw material for publishers, exploded during the pandemic due to a shortage in the world market.
These data nevertheless place the adjustments to the bill in bookstores below inflation. The consumer price index jumped 12.11% from 2019 to 2022, according to the Bank of Canada.