Chemical Market Outlook into 2018

Market outlooks remain positive in the chemical sector as we head into 2018. The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), an economic indicator created by The American Chemistry Council (ACC), showed a small gain in December and rose 3.7 percent in a year’s time. The CAB factors production, pricing, inventory and other indicators present in the market. Chemical production showed an overall gain in Q3 2017 as part of the continued recovery effort from the hurricanes that hampered production in the U.S. The specialty chemical markets also showed gains over this same time period, including gains in paint and plastic additives, plasticizers, plastic compounding, and rubber processing chemicals. Overall, these positive indicators show slow but steady growth that is expected to continue into 2018.