Japanese print and paper industry decline

The Japanese newspaper, publishing, and paper industries are undergoing significant structural shifts driven by digitalization and declining demand for printed media.

Newspaper distributors are experiencing a rise in bankruptcies, with 31 reported between January and July, marking a 29.1% increase from the previous year. This trend is attributed to a “quadruple hardship” of declining sales, labor shortages, rising raw material costs, and increased transportation expenses. Circulation has seen a long-term decline, falling from approximately 53.70 million copies in 2000 to 24.86 million by October 2025. In response, publishers such as Sankei Shimbun have announced the suspension of publications in certain prefectures.

In the broader publishing sector, sales of printed books and magazines continue to fall, with magazine sales dropping 5.7% year-on-year as of August 2026. This has caused a drastic decline in demand for graphic paper, which has fallen by more than half over the last two decades. Consequently, paper manufacturers are shifting focus toward cardboard, which now represents roughly 40% of domestic demand. This transition has altered market competitiveness, favoring companies like Oji Holdings that focus on board paper over those maintaining higher ratios of traditional paper products.