During the recession years (2008-2009) the growth rates of the world phthalic anhydride (PA) production have declined. However, since 2010 the situation in the overall PA market began to recover mainly owing to the constantly rising demand from end-use segments. In 2013, the global PA supply grew by 200,000 tonnes in comparison with 2012, and reached 4.05 million tonnes.
As of 2013, the APAC region called for the largest chunk of the world PA output volume; the volume of the PA output stood at over 2.5 million tonnes. It was followed by Europe. In 2013, the top five PA producing countries, namely China, the US, South Korea, India and Taiwan, accounted for a share of 62.3%in the world’s total PA production volume.
Phthalic Anhydride: structure of the global production by country, 2013
UPC Group, BASF, Nan Ya Plastics Corp, ExxonMobil Chemical, Aekyung Petrochemical, Shandong Hongxin Chemical, Thirumalai Chemicals, Petrowidada PT, Tianjin Taisen Chemical Industry (Group), Henan Qingan Chemical High Technology, IG Petrochemicals and Nippon Steel & Sumikin Chemical are the leading companies active in the world PA market.
As for the PA annual production capacity, it exceeded the 5.15 million tonnes mark in 2013. In the same year, APAC held the dominant position in the world in terms of PA production capacities; the region accounted for nearly 60.5% of the world’s total figure.
Phthalic Anhydride: structure of the global production capacities by region, 2013
During 2008-2009, the world PA demand has decreased due to the unfavourable economic situation across the globe. PA market is highly dependent on the overall economic situation as this material is used in many important industries, including construction and automotive industries. The world PA consumption went beyond 4 million tonnes in 2013. Now, the world PA demand follows rise trends.
The PA market is already on the rise, and it is anticipated to see positive growth in the years ahead. In the next four years, the global PA output is predicted to post growth by nearly 3.5% per year. In 2018, the global PA production is expected to exceed 4.8 million tonnes. The largest contribution to the market growth is likely to be made by the APAC region and mainly China.
More information on the phthalic anhydride market can be found in the research report “Phthalic Anhydride (PA): 2014 World Market Outlook and Forecast up to 2018”.