Engineering plastics market in South East Asia to be driven by growth in Thai market

Engineering Plastics in South East Asia is a report that provides a complete analysis of the key market drivers, restraints, market trends, and key industry challenges that affect the whole engineering plastics industry, as well as major participants analysis. In this research, Frost & Sullivan's expert analysts thoroughly examine the following markets: polyamide (PA), polycarbonate (PC), polyoxymethylene (POM), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), and others including polystyrene (PS), polyphenylene oxide (PPO) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). The engineering plastics market in SEA has witnessed rapid growth in the last four years, aided by stable and healthy economic growth trend, increasing demand from the end-user market, rapid development of the engineering plastics industry, and numerous other factors. The engineering plastics market in SEA is one of the most technologically advanced plastics markets. The current growth levels are expected to continue with Thailand, the main region for consumption of engineering plastics, driving the growth of the overall engineering plastics market. Thailand has increasingly become one of the global production bases for automotives, with the reputation of 'Detroit of Asia'. Growth in Thailand can be attributed to an increase in end-user demand following the imminent expansion and growth of its automotive industry. "Macroeconomic factors such as foreign capital investment and ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) in Thailand also drive the market growth in the country," cites the analyst of this research service. "Furthermore, increase in electrical and household appliance sectors manufacturing is expected to strengthen consumption of engineering plastics." Despite the rising demand for engineering plastics in SEA, increasing cost of raw materials and erosion of profit margins due to stiff competition impede market growth. With the mounting production cost, especially in Malaysia and Singapore, many end users are relocating to other cost-effective parts of Asia such as China and Thailand. This poses a major challenge to the engineering plastics manufacturers in Malaysia and Singapore. "In an effort to expand their market share, resin suppliers are looking to enhance product performance by using new polymerization technologies such as metallocene catalyst, different additives or polymer blends," remarks the analyst. "Suppliers and processors must also continue to develop innovative products and technologies to further develop the automotive and electrical and electronic applications market, which is set to provide several growth opportunities."