WASHINGTON (May 7, 2021) ACC release — Global chemicals production eased 0.2% in March, a pause in the global recovery that began last June, according to data collected and tabulated by the American Chemistry Council (ACC). During March, chemical output grew in Africa and the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region and was weak elsewhere. Headline global production was up 18.1% year-over-year (Y/Y) on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis. Global output stood at 131.8% of its average 2012 levels. Output was down a year ago due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
During March, global capacity rose 0.2% and was up 2.1% Y/Y. With easing output, capacity utilization in the global chemical industry slipped 0.3 points to 88.8%. This is well above last March and above the long-term (1987-2019) average of 86.3%. Among chemical industry segments, March results were negative, with gains seen only in other specialty chemicals. Considering year-earlier comparisons, production gains occurred in all segments.
ACC’s Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI) measures the production volume of the chemical industry for 33 key nations, sub-regions, and regions, all aggregated to the world total. The index is comparable to the Federal Reserve Board (FRB) production indices and features a similar base year where 2012=100. This index is developed from government industrial production indices for chemicals from more than 65 nations accounting for about 98% of the total global chemical industry. This data set is the only timely source of market trends for the global chemical industry and is comparable to the U.S. CPRI data, a timely source of U.S. regional chemical production.
