The City may obsess over gilt yields and inflation data, but this week the markets of literary taste have delivered their own volatility. The Booker Prize, that bellwether of cultural capital, has been awarded to a food-themed novel. Cue the predictable debate about what constitutes 'serious' fiction.
Yet for those of us watching the bottom line, the real story is not the critical hand-wringing. It is the British publishing industry's relentless bull run in global markets. A single Booker win can boost a title's sales by 400 per cent.
But the real feast is in the underlying fundamentals. British publishers now command nearly 60 per cent of the English-language export market. That is a moat as wide as the Atlantic.
Our literary exports are generating returns that would make any hedge fund manager envious. The food novel's critics argue it is a confection, not a meal. But the market has spoken.
Readers are consuming it like a luxury good. And in a world of capital flight and central bank jitters, a well-capitalised publishing sector offers a rare story of fiscal stability. The debate will continue over whether the Booker jury made a sound investment.
But the industry's balance sheet is in rude health. The British publishing plc is delivering alpha.
