Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Plastics News Europe
  • Plastics & Rubber World
  • Plastics News China
  • Rubber & Plastics News
logo-pn-color
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • End Markets
    • FYI Charts
    • LSR World
    • NPE 2018
    • Top materials of injection molders
      Recycled PET use by product category
      US PET, flexible packaging desintations
      Global fluropolymers additives market: CAGR
    • Who doesn't like football? And pets?
      Donnelly adds press for complex parts
      'A constant champion for our industry'
      Carteaux's legacy: Saving and transforming the Plastics Industry Association
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Plastics News Now
    • Processor of the Year
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Bumper to Bumper
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
  • Opinion
    • Viewpoint
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • What Keeps You Up At Night
    • 2019: The year the business cycle caught up to plastics machinery
      Turning a recycling nightmare into a success story
      Unlikely story of how a plastic survey marker brought people together
      Auto industry changes look like bad news for toolmakers
    • What makes a company attractive for acquisition?
      How plastics manufacturers are maximizing existing machinery
      Trademarks of the successful packaging supplier
      Molding innovations come from partnerships
    • A workable solution?
      Slower growth won't mean less M&A activity
      Skibbereen correct to stop RTP compounding plant
      Container fee a 'public relations gimmick'
    • Hubertz focused on finding new business for Wisconsin's Vision Plastics
      Photos by Don Loepp
      Busy times for Mike Walter at Met2Plastic
      Plastic Parts Inc. photos by Don Loepp. Jill has the dark sweater
      ‘Scientific mindset' works for Wisconsin's Plastic Parts
      Partnerships help i2tech keep growing
  • Blogs
    • In Motion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Pop Goes Plastics
    • Behind the lens
    • Heavy Metal
    • One Good Resin
    • NO. 7
    • From Pillar to Post
    • BRICS and Plastics
    • All Things Data
    • A 30-year-old plastics millennial
      Need skilled workers? Maybe you're looking in the wrong places
      Pondering the potential of exposure to the skilled trades
      Generations change with time, but we all share one thing in common
    • Plastics News journalists honored for outstanding work
      Forget about the mousetrap. Who can build better sustainability?
      'They didn't mean to be discriminatory'
      Plastics News welcomes reader opinions
    • Kickstart: The Sustainability Bowl
      Kickstart: Picture women in charge
      Kickstart: Living in a material world
      Kickstart: The Island of Misfit Toys
    • I’ve seen our strawless future. And it’s just fine
      South Africa takes on straws, plastics waste
      California's straw law gains interest
      DC straw ban enforcement and January usage totals
    • A 30-year plastics veteran
      An expert on workplace shootings warns: 'Lightning can strike anywhere'
      Public companies see opportunity in plastics machinery
      Celebrating National Adirondack chair day? Why not? It's all American!
    • PolyOne's Patterson recognized by University of Michigan
      Lubrizol, Maroon Group show support for science education
      MAPP awards top firms for innovation and education
      Polymers of a feather stick together at University of Akron
    • A sustainable lid for your lid (read the footnotes if you're confused)
      Berry, Sabic join forces in chemical recycling
      Recycling? For Gerber, it's child's play
      Canada and the work toward a greener legal marijuana industry
    • Raise the roof: Housing starts hit a 12-year high
      Finding a place for polymer siding in New Urbanism
      Uponor's new manufacturing plant honored again
    • Kickstart: Holy LCA Batman!
      Plastics industry's top issues on display at Chinaplas
      Basel talks consider changes to plastic scrap trade
    • The state with the most compounders? Here's a hint
      A peek behind the data in our 2019 ranking of North American blow molders
      Turning anecdotes on women-owned companies into data
      Signs of fall: Pumpkin spice, falling leaves, mold making report
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Webinars/Live Streams
    • Plastics News Live
    • Become a Speaker
    • Women Breaking The Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive 2020
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
  • Resin Resources
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Datasheets
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • K Show
  • More+
    • Data Store
    • Classifieds
    • Newsletters
    • Directory
    • Digital Edition
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
February 06, 2015 01:00 AM

Study: Indian plastics industry to grow 10 percent a year through 2018

Steve Toloken
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    GANDHINAGAR, INDIA — India's plastics processing sector is expected to grow 10 percent a year through 2018, although from a small base, as the manufacturing industry and economy shows signs of rebounding, according to industry statistics released at the Plastindia trade show.

    The country's plastics market will reach 18 million metric tons of material processed by 2018, but will still face many challenges, including having too many small companies that are not competitive globally, according to an analysis by a senior executive at India's largest plastics producer, Reliance Industries Ltd.

    In general, though, there were positive signs, including low oil prices that make the country's naptha-based plastics feedstock more competitive.

    “Economic recovery is underway,” said Ajay Shah, head of Reliance's polymers and cracker unit, speaking at a Feb. 6 conference attached to the Plastindia show, held Feb. 5-10 in Gandhinagar in India's Gujarat state.

    “I think the reform momentum has picked up,” Shah said, arguing that economic policies of India's new Prime Minister Narendra Modi may provide a boost.

    “The reforms, if they sustain and progress in the way it is happening in the last couple of months, this new government could really be the foundation for really strong growth as we go forward.”

    Plastics consumption in India remains very low by world standards, with per capita plastics use at about 9.7 kilograms in India, compared with 45 kg in China and 109 kg in the United States, Reliance said.

    What that means is that India, with 17 percent of the world's population, accounts for only between 4 and 7 percent of global plastic demand, depending on resin type, Shah said.

    “In India we are fairly small in terms of global consumption,” he said. “That in a way reflects the global potential as we go forward.”

    Drivers of demand include agriculture, infrastructure, food packaging, automobiles and medical manufacturing, which are all fueled ultimately by rising consumer income, Reliance said.

    “Penetration in some of these areas could be low today, but as it increases, that provides great potential for growth,” Shah said.

    A study released at the show by the Mumbai-based Plastindia Foundation in particular singled out the flexible packaging industry, saying it was “poised for strong growth” and had been insulated somewhat from India's slowing of growth rates in the last two or three years.

    “New applications/innovations in packaging development are driving growth in India and these are ably supported by the current and upcoming domestic capacities,” the report said.

    Shah also mentioned several government social or environmental initiatives that could benefit plastics in India, including spending on water infrastructure, food security and storage and affordable housing.

    Some markets for plastics have struggled, though. India's passenger car market has not grown in several years, with the country buying about 3 million cars a year.

    The passenger car market actually shrank by 5 percent in its fiscal year ending March 31, to 3.07 million vehicles.

    “India's plastics penetration into traditional material based goods is yet to gather momentum,” Reliance noted, specifying automotive and households goods as examples.

    India's use of engineering plastics in cars, for example, is about half per car compared to developed markets, according to information from Dutch resin manufacturer Royal DSM N.V.

    But India is likely to catch up quickly, in part as auto makers increasingly have global platforms and want standardized platforms for manufacturing vehicles, said Sanjay Jain, business director — India, for DSM.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    Indorama acquires California PET recycler Green Fiber International
    Trelleborg launches major restructuring plan
    In the workplace, two languages are spoken
    PolyOne's Patterson recognized by University of Michigan
    Miller out to mold parts and company culture
    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    logo-pn-color
    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Plastics News Europe
    • PRW
    • LSR World
    • Rubber & Plastics News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Plastics News China
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    Copyright © 1996-2019. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Plastics News Now
        • Processor of the Year
        • Numbers that Matter
        • Bumper to Bumper
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • FYI Charts
        • Current FYI
      • LSR World
      • NPE 2018
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Galleries
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • Viewpoint
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • What Keeps You Up At Night
    • Blogs
      • In Motion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Pop Goes Plastics
      • Behind the lens
      • Heavy Metal
      • One Good Resin
      • NO. 7
      • From Pillar to Post
      • BRICS and Plastics
      • All Things Data
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Women Breaking The Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive 2020
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
      • Industry Events
      • Webinars/Live Streams
      • Plastics News Live
      • Become a Speaker
    • Resin Resources
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
      • Datasheets
    • Rankings
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • K Show
    • More+
      • Data Store
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified
      • Newsletters
      • Directory
      • Digital Edition