The sale of high-density polyethylene (HDPE)-based range of products including milk bottles, water pipes and films, is set to grow 4.2 per cent per annum to reach $85.8 billion by 2022, according to a recent research.

Leading market research institute Ceresana’s newest report on HDPE said turnover of $61.8 billion was achieved by he sector last year.

It included the production of packaging and hollow bodies of all kinds, household goods and also technical parts and construction products, it said.

The Asia-Pacific region is by far the largest consumer of this important kind of plastic, which has within the last eight year increased its world market share from 33 per cent to 44 per cent.

The region will grow the strongest in future, however not to the same extent as in the past, said Oliver Kutsch, manager, Ceresana.

Meanwhile, Eastern Europe and the Middle East will experience a constant growing demand for HDPE, which North America is expected to manage a turnaround in the course of the next few years, he said.

HDPE is most frequently used for the production of films, most of all packaging films, bags and sacks. Last year, about 26 per cent of the total consumption fell within the field of rigid packaging (bottles, canisters and covers).

Another significant application area are products for the construction industry, such as pipes and cables. In Asia-Pacific countries, extrusion dominates as processing method, due to the high film production and the strong construction industry. However, in North America and Western Europe HDPE is mainly processed with blow moulding and injection moulding, said the report.

The global production capacity for HDPE accounted for about 57.5 million tones last year, including in swing plants, which can produce HDPE as well as LLDPE (linear low-density polyethylene)

For the coming years, numerous HDPE factories have been planned. Although there are still a few smaller providers, already 57 per cent of the global capacity account for the 15 largest companies (including joint ventures). This market concentration is expected to further increase over the next few years, said the report.

The products will be exported most from the Middle East with a net of about 4.8 million tonnes a year, it added. - TradeArabia News Service