Chinese publishers are rushing to capitalise on the growth in the country’s children’s books market, with book sales data company Open Book citing a 15% year-on-year rise in value terms in 2016 to date, following double-digit surges in recent years.

Open Book put the value of the 2015 market at ¥13bn (£1.52bn). But some trade figures cautioned over its future, fearing that the recent rapid growth could precipitate a fall in quality and an overcrowded market.

Speaking at the Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair last week, Yang Lei, general manager of Open Book, commented: “More publ...