The Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand (Pubat) forecasts a resilient year for the domestic book industry, projecting growth of 5–8% in 2026 despite escalating Middle East conflicts.

Nattakorn Vuttichaipornkul, Pubat president, maintains that books occupy a unique position as both educational resources and entertainment, suggesting readers will preserve discretionary spending on titles even as household budgets tighten.

Cost Pressures and Production Realities

Whilst energy and logistics costs have risen sharply, the immediate impact remains contained. Paper and printing constitute 30–50% of production expenses, yet titles scheduled for the first half of 2026 are already in advanced production stages with fixed costs. Pubat warns, however, that prolonged conflict may deliver more pronounced effects during the latter half of the year.

Market Context and Recovery Trajectory

The Thai book market has demonstrated remarkable recovery since the pandemic. The industry reached an estimated 18 billion baht ($530 million) in 2025, with Pubat revising forecasts upward to 20 billion baht ($589 million) following record-breaking fair performance.

This represents significant progress from the 12.5 billion baht ($368 million) recorded in 2021, though still below pre-pandemic peaks of 30 billion baht ($883 million).

Bangkok International Book Fair 2026

Pubat is hosting the 54th National Book Fair & Bangkok International Book Fair (26 March through 6 April at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center. The event spans 30,000 square metres across 1,028 booths, featuring 362 publishers and organisations.

The concurrent Bangkok Rights Fair (27–28 March), organised with the Department of International Trade Promotion, offers dedicated copyright negotiation sessions for international publishers.

The View From The Beach

International participation demonstrates Thailand’s emerging role as a regional publishing hub. Eighty companies from 24 countries – including Singapore, Turkey, Vietnam, the UK, Japan and South Korea – will exhibit alongside 83 Thai entrepreneurs and authors.

Pubat anticipates 1.5 million visitors, targeting a new record. The October 2025 Book Expo Thailand achieved this milestone, generating 474 million baht ($14 million) in sales – a 8.2% increase year-on-year.

Notably, Generation Z (aged 12–28) comprised 70% of attendees, representing a 20% demographic shift that signals sustained market vitality.

Publishers would do well to look at how Gen Z is responding to books in the emerging markets, and perhaps question some of the more negative press in the western media that seems intent on deriding Gen Z’s many positive attributes for the sake of a clickbait headline.

This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsfeed.