Lucintel, a market research and management consulting company, has compiled a new report on the global thermoplastics industry titled, “Global Thermoplastic Industry 2012-2017: Trend, Profit, and Forecast Analysis.”
According to this report, the global thermoplastics industry which has registered good growth will sustain its growth at a 4% CAGR over the next five years to achieve revenue of US$440 billion in 2017. The industry will be primarily driven by China and India owing to the availability of low-cost labor. Growth in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region will be the result of expansion of downstream processing capabilities. With APAC dominating the global thermoplastics market with a share of 41.4% of global revenue, the thermoplastics industry is deemed to be fragmented.
The market dynamics of the thermoplastics industry are determined by availability and price of raw materials such as naphtha and crude oil, ethylene procurement, distribution costs, scale and technology, energy costs, governmental regulations and environmental problems. The report indicates that the decline in growth as a result of global recession in 2009 was followed by a period of recovery between 2010 and 2011 driven by increased demand for plastics from emerging economies and expansion of capabilities in APAC and other parts of the world.
In the forthcoming period of 2012 to 2017, the highest growth is expected to be registered by the APAC region. The up-and-coming trends that will have a major influence on industry growth are thermoplastics derived from sugarcane and ultra-high molecular weight thermoplastic. The PVC plastic pipe market expected to grow on the strength of requirements created by the development of cable protection, under-floor heating and utility water systems in Europe and North America. The industry is envisaged to counter challenges posed by price fluctuations of raw materials, product commoditization and regulatory mandates for carbon dioxide emission reduction.