Pigments Market Update
hand, iron oxides are accounting for a comparatively large
share of regional consumption. The largest growth potential
in Asia-Pacific is expected for carbon black pigments,” the
report states.
The sale of pigments is largely fueled by the paints and varnishes market sector. Ceresana found that more than 43% of
total global demand has its roots in this segment.
“The processing of plastics reports the second largest market
volume,” researchers found, “and accounts for 27% of pigment
demand. Plastics will develop at the second highest growth rates
in the future; only the segment printing inks will develop more
dynamically, due to the growing market for printed packaging.”
A Closer Look at 2015
Regarding the performance of the pigments market in 2015,
specifically as it relates to the coatings industry, Neil Forsythe,
sales manager of BASF’s Dispersions & Pigments Division,
North America, said: “The pigments market has historically
performed reasonably close to GDP and this continues to be
the case in 2015. Within the pigments market, there have been
application areas that have been stronger or weaker. For in-
stance, publication printing continues to be weak, while parts
of the industrial, interior decoration and automotive markets
have been stronger. “
He added, “For 2016, we expect to see this continuation of
trends linked to the strength of the US economy and global pro-
duction growth.”
Mike Crosby, transportation segment manager of BASF’s
Dispersions & Pigments Division, North America, added,
“While automotive pigment demand is largely driven by global
automotive production, opaque and interference effect pigments
are growing faster than traditional absorbing organic and inor-
ganic pigments.”
Charles Hoover, president and CEO of Hoover Color
Corporation, said that “the first three quarters of 2015 were
good, but since China devaluated its currency things have slowed.
“Pigments are at the very beginning of many supply-chains,
so small changes in demand travel back quickly to the pigment
suppliers. We are being very cautious about 2016. While we
are comfortable predicting modest volume growth in North
America and Southeast Asia, the rest of world is very question-
able,” Hoover said.
Michael McCormick, global industry manager for Industrial
Coatings at Chromaflo, said that from a colorants perspective,
the North American market was sluggish.
“The price of oil drove down demand on industrial main-
tenance and protective coatings,” he said. “A reduction in the
marine coatings demand also negatively impacted the industrial
market performance.
“On the positive side, coatings for wood furniture and au-
tomotive OEM performed well. The outlook for 2016 appears
to remain sluggish for special purpose coatings, mainly due
to oil prices. OEM coatings should continue to perform well
due to continued growth in automotive and wood coatings,”
he added.
An Interview With Peter Baldus,
Vice President of LANXESS’ Inorganic
Pigments Group, Americas region
Coatings World: The theme of LANXESS’ recent pigment
symposium in Shanghai, China was “The Global Pigments Industry in Transition – turning challenges into sustainable value
creation.” So, where do we go from here?
Peter Baldus: The pigment industry is in a transitional
phase caused by two main factors. First, the leading paints
and coatings manufacturers have become increasingly international in their activities ever since the onset of market globalization. Consequently, pigment suppliers are now expected to grow along with them worldwide and to make pigments
of consistent quality available everywhere in the world.
Second, the global industry for the production of synthetic
iron oxide currently is in a phase of consolidation. This effect is
most noticeable in China, where a significant number of small
and medium sized producers have exited the market over the
last 18 months. The establishment of stricter environmental restrictions in China has had a major impact, and this trend will
continue in the coming years. Those companies that have the
know-how required to implement sustainable production processes and have sufficient size and competence to meet the demands of the global market are the ones that will be successful.
C W: Pigment manufacturers recently have stepped up investments in expanding their capacities, LANXESS included, with
its new plant in Ningbo. To what extent do you think a risk of
overcapacities exists?
PB: The announcements of ever-greater production volumes creates the impression that capacities are currently
growing at a fast rate – but in reality, worldwide production
capacities for synthetic iron oxide have declined dramatically
in recent years due to numerous plant shutdowns in China.
This trend is likely to continue, because the capacities currently being dismantled are greater than the new ones recently
announced. Furthermore we are always cautious with such announcements as some market players, who are only a minority
shareholder, report the full capacity increases. Double counting in this case is unavoidable
CW: At the pigment symposium, LANXESS introduced the
“Ningbo Process” as the first new production process for inorganic red pigments. Why the name Ningbo?
PB: In Ningbo, LANXESS will soon be starting up operation of the most modern facility for iron oxide red pigments in
the world. Designed to the latest environmental standards, the
plant for iron oxide red pigments, as well as a pigment mixing and milling facility, will begin production in the first quarter
of 2016. IPG will produce red pigments there using a method
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