Insight
Coronavirus shockwaves hit the petrochemicals industry: how will it respond?
Report summary
Due to the coronavirus, the near-term landscape is shifting at an alarming pace and only one thing seems certain: the petrochemical industry’s decade ahead will be shaped by this crisis, be it consumer behaviour, investment decisions, the corporate landscape or even the extent and success of globalisation itself. Two of the immediate major shockwaves hitting the global petrochemical industry are linked to economic activity and feedstock pricing. Consumption patterns are being upturned by societal disruption. Plunging oil prices are driving petrochemical pricing, cost competitiveness and profitability. This insight explores the early implications of coronavirus across the petrochemical industry and a range of possible responses, including closures, restructuring, investment restraint, integration and even rethinking globalisation.
Table of contents
- Executive Summary
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Economic activity shockwave
- Global economy: recession bound
- Petrochemical demand: searching for the new normal
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Feedstock pricing shockwave
- Oil and feedstocks: near-term volatility and longer-term un certainty
- Competitiveness: near-term costs and longer-term investments
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Potential industry responses
- Capacity closure
- Industry restructuring
- Investment restraint
- Enhanced integration
- Rethinking globalisation
Tables and charts
This report includes 2 images and tables including:
- Normalised world GDP/capita versus total fibre consumption/capita
- Global paraxylene margin curve - 2021 basis
What's included
This report contains:
