(1) Market size and growth trend
In terms of market size, the plastics industry has shown steady growth over the past few decades. According to the statistics of the Global Plastics Market Research Report 2024 published by Statista, the global plastics market size reached about $650 billion in 2023. Demand for plastics is growing strongly, led by emerging economies, particularly in Asia. Taking China as an example, according to the 2023 Annual Report on the Development of China's Plastics Industry released by the China Plastics Processing Industry Association, as the world's largest consumer of plastics, China's plastic consumption accounted for nearly 30% of the world's total consumption in 2023. From the analysis of growth trends, although the annual growth rate of the global plastics market has slowed down in recent years due to factors such as environmental protection policies and fluctuations in raw material prices, it is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of 2%-3% in the next 5 years. This is mainly due to the increasing demand for plastic materials in emerging applications such as 3D printing and wearable devices, which are forecast from the "Future Trends and Forecasts in the Plastics Market (2024-2029)" report published by Mordor Intelligence, a well-known market research organization.
(2) Main product types and application fields
There are many types of plastic products, mainly including polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), etc. Among them, polyethylene is widely used in packaging films, injection molding products and other fields due to its good flexibility and chemical corrosion resistance. According to the "Polyethylene Market Size, Share and Trend Analysis Report (2024 - 2030)" released by Grand View Research, a market research organization, the global polyethylene market share will account for about 35% in 2023. Because of its high strength and heat resistance, polypropylene is widely used in auto parts, home appliance shells, etc., accounting for about 28% of the market share, and the data source is the same as the analysis of the polypropylene market in the above report.
In terms of application areas, the packaging industry is the largest application area for plastics, accounting for about 40% of total plastic consumption, according to the "Global Plastics Demand Outlook (2024)" report published by Freedonia Group. With the rapid development of the e-commerce industry, the demand for plastics for express packaging continues to grow. For instance, according to the 2023 Sustainability Report released by JD Logistics, the number of plastic express bags used by JD Logistics in 2023 exceeded 1 billion. The construction industry is the second largest application area for plastics, accounting for about 25%, and according to the data reported by the Freedonia Group above, plastic pipes, door and window profiles are widely used in building construction. The demand for plastics in the automotive industry is also rising, and the trend of lightweight automobiles has led to the increasing use of plastics in automotive interiors, exteriors and engine parts, which currently accounts for about 15% of plastic consumption, according to the "Plastics Application Trends in the Automotive Industry (2024)" report published by IHS Markit.
Post time: Mar-22-2025