y of pyrophyllite

F O C US World carbon black consumption in 2003 was around 7.8 M tonnes, indicating little net change in manufacturers’ inventories. Of total consumption, the tyres industry accounts for 67% and other sectors of the rubber industry account for 25%. Carbon black usage in pigments and other applications accounts for about 8% of world demand. There has been a somewhat surprising upsurge in world carbon black demand in recent years. Between 1992 and 2002, world consumption increased at an average rate of 2.3% per annum. During the late 1990s, consumption was increasing at 3-4% per annum. There was a dip in 2001, so that the trendline reverted to normal, but this was followed by an upsurge of 9% in 2002. According to ‘CMR’, world carbon black consumption in 2003 was 3.1% higher than in 2002. According to ‘ECN’, consumption was 2.9% higher. Imports – notably from Russia, Ukraine and Egypt – are playing an increasingly important role in the West European market. Claims of dumping by suppliers from these three countries were rejected by the EU anti-trust authorities in March 2003. In 1996, overall import penetration into the EU (imports as a percentage of total consumption) was only 12%. By 2002, import penetration had risen to 18%. Faced with mounting pressure on volumes and margins, several leading producers (notably Cabot and Degussa) have curtailed their operations in Western Europe. The region’s production fell by 4% in 2002 and by a further 2% in 2003. North American carbon black production increased by 2% in 2002 and edged up slightly further in 2003. Asian plants have been the major contributors to world production growth. Between 2001 and 2003, carbon black production increased by 12% in India, by 9% in China and by 8% in South Korea. Higher costs for oil and natural gas, especially during the early part of 2003, put a lot of pressure on carbon black producers’ profit margins. In most markets, suppliers increased their carbon black prices sharply in February and March 2003 and, with healthy demand growth and a tightening supply/demand balance, these price increases were sustained.

JANUARY 2004

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PIGMENTS

Over the year as a whole, carbon black prices increased by about 30% (in US dollar terms). Against this background, the EU, US and Canadian anti-trust authorities launched investigations into pricefixing and cartel-like behaviour on the part of leading carbon black suppliers. The outlook for the carbon black industry is quite good. World consumption growth between now and 2010 is forecast to be in the region of 2.5-3.0% per annum. Over the next few years, consumption growth is expected to be higher than the long-term trendline. Between now and 2005, global carbon black demand growth for the tyres sector is forecast at 3.6% per annum, while demand growth for pigments and speciality applications is forecast at 3.8% per annum. China will continue to show the fastest growth, estimated at 8.3% per annum between now and 2005. Demand growth in Central and Eastern Europe is forecast at 6.8% per annum, while demand growth in Western Europe is forecast at a fairly healthy 2.7% per annum. Thanks mainly to new capacity in China, Egypt, India and Thailand, world carbon black capacity is expected to reach 9.5 M tonnes/y by end-2005. For the five years beyond 2005, it is estimated that the world will need a further 1.0-1.3 M tonnes/y of carbon black in order to meet demand. Chemical Market Reporter, 13 Oct 2003 & 12 Jan 2004 (Website: http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com) & European Chemical News, 13 Oct 2003, 79 (2072), 26 & 10 Nov 2003, 79 (2076), 12 & 22 Dec 2003, 79 (2081), 14

World produces just over 2 M tonnes/y of pyrophyllite Global production of pyrophyllite was 2.1 M tonnes in 2002, with Japan and South Korea accounting for more than 80% of output. Brazil produced 150,000 tonnes, while India produced 85,000 tonnes. Pyrophyllite functions as an effective substitute for talc in a number of applications. Demand overall is relatively stable. Industrial Minerals, Nov 2003, (434), 50

Plastics masterbatch & compounding in Europe & North America A recent study by Applied Market Information (AMI, of Bristol, England)

shows that the European thermoplastics masterbatch industry is increasingly dominated by multinational producers. The leading suppliers to the European market are: Schulman, Ampacet, Clariant, Cabot and PolyOne – in that order. These five companies accounted for 60% of the market in 2002. There is an inexorable trend towards consolidation on the supply-side of the industry: the total number of European masterbatch producers is now 613, compared against 623 in 2001. BASF and Ciba have been trying to sell their masterbatch businesses, but so far without success. AMI’s overview of plastics compounding in Western Europe shows that masterbatches now account for 11% of the total market. Colour compounding accounts for 31%, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) compounding for 22%, technical polyolefins account for 18% and engineering plastics account for another 18%. Another recent survey by AMI covers thermoplastic concentrate producers in North America. There are more than 140 companies supplying this market. Ampacet is the clear market-leader, with production more than twice that of PolyOne, its nearest rival. Unlike Ampacet, PolyOne is also a large plastics compounder. Clariant is the third largest supplier. The top five suppliers have a combined market-share of about 43% and the 50 suppliers identified in AMI’s report account for an estimated 91% of the market. Kunststof en Rubber, Oct 2003, 56 (10), 5 (in Dutch) & Plastics and Rubber Weekly, 14 Nov 2003, 20 & European Chemical News, 3 Nov 2003, 79 (2075), 12

US spending on pigments to rise at 5% per annum According to a recent survey by Freedonia (of Cleveland. OH), US expenditure on pigments is expected to rise by 5% per annum to reach $3.6 bn in 2007. The speciality pigments sector is expected to show the strongest growth – at 6.7% per annum, reaching $560 M. A big factor here is the growing popularity of metallic and pearlescent pigments for automotive paints and other applications. Spending on organic pigments is forecast to grow at 5.6%

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