World demand for kaolin is forecast to grow 2.1 percent per year to 27. 5 million metric
tons in 2020, valued at $4.1 billion.
Gains will be driven by expansion
of manufacturing activity in developing
countries, particularly in the Asia/Pacific
and Africa/Mideast regions. However,
advances will be constrained by a contraction in the paper markets of North
America and Western Europe, as the
increasing digitization of media erodes
demand for kaolin-intensive coated paper products. These and other trends are
presented in “World Kaolin,” a new study
from The Freedonia Group.
The paper market will continue to be
the largest global outlet for kaolin, accounting for over one-third of global demand in 2020.
However, the importance of the pa-
per market has declined significantly since
2005, when it accounted for almost half of
world kaolin consumption. Production of
uncoated paper and paperboard grew be-
tween 2005 and 2015, but output of coated
paper products, which consume kaolin more
intensively than do uncoated products, de-
clined. As a result, demand for kaolin in the
paper market fell. The demand for paper
coated with alternative materials, particular-
ly calcium carbonates, has become increas-
ingly important since the 1990s.
Demand for kaolin in ceramics pro-
duction, the second largest market, grew
at an above average rate between 2010
and 2015.
Gains in this market were supported
by a boom in demand for ceramic prop-
pants used in hydraulic fracturing ap-
plications, particularly in the U.S. A fall
in global oil prices beginning in 2015,
though, cast petroleum industries into a
state of uncertainty, and rapid gains for
ceramic proppants are not expected to be
repeated through 2020.
The Asia/Pacific region accounted
for the largest share of kaolin demand
in 2015 due to China and several other
major kaolin consumers, including Japan,
India, and South Korea. Through 2020,
growth in kaolin demand in the region is
forecast to outpace the global average,
with the fastest gains in India, Malaysia,
and China. However, regional growth
will be restrained by a contraction in
Japan, where kaolin consumption in the
paper market is expected to fall.
Kusumgar, Nerlfi &
Growney To Release Third
Global Paint & Coatings
Study
Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney will release
its third Global Paint & Coatings study.
According to the firm, global consumption of coatings in 2016 is a projected 88
billion pounds ( 40 MM tons) worth some
$130 billion. Growth has slowed in recent years following the modest bounce
back from the recession year of 2009.
The Asia-Pacific region continues to lead
Global Demand for Kaolin to Reach
27. 5 Million Metric Tons
