Petrochemicals Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2032

This report describes and explains the petrochemicals market and covers 2017-2022, termed the historic period, and 2022-2027 termed the forecast period, along with further forecasts for the period 2027-2032. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global petrochemicals market grew from $539,925.0 million in 2022, having increased at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.1% since 2017. The market is expected to grow from $539,925.0 million in 2022 to $682,814.8 million in 2027 at a rate of 4.8%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.7% from 2027 and reach $858,351.3 million in 2032.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the increasing industrial manufacturing of thermoplastic, strong economic growth in emerging markets, the accelerating production of natural gas, the growing demand for plastics, the rapid increase in oil production and growth of the construction industry. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period were the impact of COVID-19, the increasing raw material costs and the stringent regulations.

Going forward, rapid industrialization, the rising demand for synthetic materials, the rising demand for electronic products and the increasing sales of electric and hybrid vehicles will drive the market growth. Factors that could hinder the growth of the petrochemicals market in the future include the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, the rise in the use of environmentally friendly products and the shortage of skilled labor in the oil and petroleum sector.

The petrochemicals market is segmented by type into ethylene, propylene, benzene, xylene, styrene, toluene, cumene and other petrochemicals. The ethylene market was the largest segment of the petrochemicals market by type, accounting for $122,847.0 million or 22.8% of the total market in 2022. It is expected to be the fastest-growing segment by type going forward at a CAGR of 7.3%.

The petrochemicals market is also segmented by end-user into textile, furniture, paints and coatings, pharmaceuticals, synthetic rubber and fibers, plastic materials and resins, toiletries and cleaning compounds, and other end-users. The other end-users market was the largest segment of the petrochemicals market by end-user, accounting for $189,247.3 million or 35.1% of the total market in 2022. The plastic materials and resins market is expected to be the fastest-growing segment by end-user going forward at a CAGR of 7.3%.

Asia Pacific was the largest region in the petrochemicals market, accounting for 42.9% of the global market in 2022. It was followed by the Middle East, Western Europe and the other regions. Going forward, the fastest growing regions in the petrochemicals market will be Africa and the Western Europe, where growth will be at CAGRs of 9.9% and 6.2% respectively from 2022-2027.

The global petrochemicals market is slightly concentrated, with a small number of large players in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 32.26% of the total market in 2021. The market concentration can be attributed to the high barriers to entry, in terms of high costs, and the stringent regulations set up by the regulatory authorities. Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) was the largest competitor with 7.12% of the market, followed by Sinopec with 6.54%, ENEOS Holdings, Inc. with 4.12%, LG Chem Ltd with 3.85%, Royal Dutch Shell with 3.56%, BASF SE with 2.29%, LyondellBasell Industries Holdings BV with 1.83%, Chevron with 1.13%, GS Caltex Corporation with 1.11% and Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation with 0.71%.

The top opportunities in the petrochemicals market by type will arise in the ethylene market, which will gain $51,660.3 million of global annual sales by 2027. The top opportunities in the petrochemicals market by end user will arise in the other end-users market, which will gain $44,235.9 million of global annual sales by 2027. The petrochemicals market size will gain the most in China at $18,392.4 million.

Market-trend-based strategies for the petrochemicals market include advanced polymers development, chemical plant development and investments, product innovations, artificial intelligence (AI) in petrochemical industry and collaborations among petrochemical manufacturing companies.

Player-adopted strategies in the petrochemicals industry includes enhancing business operations by expanding petrochemicals plant and launching new products, focusing on partnership and collaboration to accelerate business growth, enhancing business operations through increasing its comprehensive, integrated capabilities by ensuing the strategic collaboration and merger, enhancing business operations through increasing innovation, technological solution to encompasses customers/clients’ satisfaction and expanding business through sustainable investments.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the publisher recommends the petrochemicals companies to focus on products innovations , focus on advanced polymers development, focus on use of artificial intelligence (AI), focus on increasing investments in new chemical plants, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on mergers and acquisitions, focus on partnerships and collaborations, provide competitively priced offerings, participate in trade shows and events, continue to use B2B promotions, continue to target fast-growing end-users.