Wednesday, March 12, 2014

China's titanium feedstock supply in 2013 flat from 2012

It is widely expected that China's economic growth will slow down. The former investment-led growth model, which depended on the real estate industry, is no longer in effect. This is causing a decrease in the demand for architecture coatings. Such a change in the domestic environment has determined the future development of the TiO2 industry. China's TiO2 output increased from 308,000tonnes to 1,803,000 tonnes in 2011 at a CAGR of 19.33%. Assuming that 2001-2011 is classified as the growth stage of China's TiO2 industry, the industry has entered a stabilisation stage since the beginning of 2012, according to Titanium China Monthly Report issued by CCM in Feburary.

It can be judged from the actions taken by the TiO2 multinationals that China's TiO2 industry has entered a stabilisation stage. As the world's largest TiO2 consuming and producing country, China's developments are closely watched by the TiO2 multinationals During the stabilisation stage, an industry's growth will slow down or even stop.

In Sept. 2013, Huntsman Corporation acquired Rockwood Holdings, Inc's titanium dioxide business, which has caused a further rise in the concentration of the overseas titanium dioxide industry. In addition, DuPont, the world's largest TiO2 producer with a large market share in China, has decided to spin off its titanium dioxide segment, because the company predicted that such a highly cyclical segment will develop at a low speed in the future. DuPont will pay attention to high-speed investment opportunities in order to maximise opportunities for its shareholders.

Various TiO2 producers in China are gradually increasing the differentiation of its products and reducing the homogeneity of their product mix. The market has been subdivided and is maturing. For example, Sichuan Lomon Titanium Co., Ltd.'s TiO2, which is widely believed to have good performance in every aspect, has a high price; Shandong Doguide Group Co., Ltd.'s TiO2 has good stability performance; Yunnan Dahutong Investment Group Company's TiO2 has high covering power; and BlueStar New Chemical Materials Co., Ltd. Guangxi Branch's TiO2 has high whiteness.

The product mix has changed from being dominated by anatase TiO2 of low added value to rutile TiO2 of high added value. The TiO2 (general type) has been subdivided into coating grade TiO2, paper grade TiO2, and plastic grade TiO2, and others. The overcapacity, and the slowdown in the exports of TiO2 implies that China's TiO2 has been gradually entering a stabilization stage.

TiO2 exports substantially increase at the growth stage but decline when entering the stabilisation stage. Correspondingly, TiO2 exports fluctuated at a high level in 2012-2013, following strong growth in 2009-2011. Concerning the production capacity and output, survey data from CCM shows that the production capacity and output of China's TiO2 industry were 2.98 million t/a and 1.90million tonnes in 2013, and the operating rate was 63.76%.

The analysis method for product life cycle is only used to statistically analyse the current stage of a product. However, the development of an industry is dynamic and ever-changing, and technological breakthroughs can change the direction of the industry. For example, a recent study found that the surface of TiO2 can be photocatalysed to produce hydrogen, and if the technology is a breakthrough and related products reach mass production, the future development of the TiO2 industry will be boosted, and will re-enter the growth stage from the current stabilisation stage. Therefore, this article only provides an analytical point of view.

China’s TiO2 imports increase substantially while exports rose slightly
China's titanium feedstock supply in 2013 flat from 2012
Post-festival downturn in China's TiO2 market with slight decrease in price
Panxi Experimental Zone starts worldwide bidding for six titanium related projects
GPRO Titanium: net profit increases by 9.98% YoY; anatase TiO2 more profitable than Rutile Titanium
Anhui Annada revises downward net profit forecast
Pick-up of TiO2 market to support DuPont in spinning off its performance chemicals segment
Strategies for TiO2 producers in 2014: improve quality, control costs
Henan Billions forecasts 87.22% decrease in net profit for 2013
China's TiO2 industry enters into stabilisation stage
Orient Zirconic intends to acquire 100% equity stake in Winsheen New Material
Changes in pattern of China's titanium feedstock imports
Sky Dragon Group's net profit in 2013 may increase by 2%-20% YoY
Double-digit percentage increases in China's auto output and sales in 2013 boost automotive coating consumption
Nippon Paint, Dulux and Carpoly: top three frequent coating keywords in Jan. 2014
AkzoNobel maintains first place among worldwide coatings manufacturers
Growth rate of Suzhou Kingswood's revenue decreases in H2 2013

Titanium Dioxide China Monthly Report, issued by CCM on 25th, is mainly comprised of five columns of news and reports related to TiO2 market, including “Supply & Demand”, “Company Dynamics”, “Upstream”, “Downstream” and “Price Update”. You can find out more business opportunities through the latest and helpful information provided in the report.

CCM is dedicated to market research in China, Asia-Pacific Rim and global market. With a staff of more than 150 dedicated highly-educated professionals, CCM offers Market Data, Analysis, Reports, Newsletters, Buyer-Trader Information, Import/Export Analysis, and Consultancy Service. 

For more information, please visit http://www.cnchemicals.com.

Guangzhou CCM Information Science & Technology Co., Ltd.
17th Floor, Huihua Commercial & Trade Mansion, No.80 Xianlie Zhong Road, Guangzhou 510070, China
Tel: 86-20-37616606


No comments: