Global petrochemical oulook

19-Jan-07

A report by CMAI estimates world ethylene demand growth will average just over 4% over the next five years. The five year outlook shows world propylene demand growth to average slightly less than 5% per year, with polypropylene being the main driver for growth. Global propylene demand during 2006 saw a 5.5% growth rate, pegging total propylene consumptions up to about 69 million metric tons. Demand for polystyrene is dropping dramatically, with demand growth for most of this decade pegged below 1%, with predictions of only a slight increase in demand through 2011. This low demand will result in more than ample PS capacity to meet current demand. After a significant decrease between 2000 and 2001, world demand for butadiene increased fairly consistently between 2001 and 2006. Over the next five years, demand is expected to grow at a rate just under 3% pa, which is slightly lower than the 3.7% annual growth experienced over the past five years.