Industrial Chemical Manufacturing
Companies in this industry manufacture chemicals, which are usually separate chemical elements or separate chemically-defined compounds, using basic processes, such as thermal crackling and distillation. Major companies include BASF (Germany), Dow (US), Formosa Petrochemical Corporation (Taiwan), Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (Japan), SABIC (Saudi Arabia), Shell (UK), Sinopec Group (China), and TotalEnergies (France).
The global chemical production has been forecast to grow by 2.7% from 2023 to 2025, a rate above the average for the years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. China is the world's largest chemical market and will continue to drive growth in the Asia region from the Chinese automotive industry. The European Union and the US will see similar growth trajectories, driven by a rising demand in chemicals.
The US industrial chemical manufacturing industry includes about 2,500 establishments (single-location companies and units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $220 billion. Key growth drivers include output in major end-use markets such as automotive manufacturing and construction.
Competitive Landscape
Demand depends on the overall strength of the economy, because most industrial chemicals are used in the manufacture of more-complicated products like fibers, plastics, paints, and paper. The profitability of individual companies is closely linked to efficient operations, because most products are commodities. Big producers have large economies of scale in production, which is why some chemicals are made by just a handful of companies. Small companies can compete effectively by making specialized or highly-purified products.
The US industry is concentrated: the 50 largest companies generate about 70% of revenue. Specific market segments are often dominated by just a handful of competitors. As few as eight companies account for almost all revenues in the petrochemical and carbon black sectors, for example.
International trade in industrial chemicals is substantial. China, Canada, Germany, and Ireland are the largest suppliers of US imports, accounting for about 25% of production. Top markets for US exports include Mexico, Canada, China, and Belgium, accounting for about 30% of production.
Products, Operations & Technology
Industrial chemicals include?gases?like oxygen and nitrogen, dyes and pigments, chlorine and caustic soda, sulfuric and nitric acids, and thousands of?organic?chemicals.
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Also includes the following chapters:
Quarterly Industry Update
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Industry Indicators
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Business Challenges
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Call Preparation Questions
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Industry Forecast
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Industry Websites
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Glossary of Acronyms