A significant increase in demand for original equipment (OEM) tyres from the automobile industry as well as a shift in consumer preference for high-performance tyres are expected to have positive impact on the growth of the global styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) market over the next nine years.
Worldwide SBR market is expected to reach US$9.9 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc.
In the recent times, the demand supply gap for natural rubber (NR) has widened, making the prices of the commodity a matter of concern. In 2016, the growth in supply of natural rubber was 1.1% while the demand grew at a rate of about 6%. This deficit has been exerting a pressure on the supplies and leading to a high volatility in the prices, which in turn has been a major driver for the growth of the SBR industry.
Over the last five years, the average consumption of synthetic rubber has been higher than NR by about 3,500 kilo tonnes per year. SBR is the highest consumed synthetic rubber, accounting for over 45% of consumption. Therefore, the restraints faced by the NR industry act as the major drivers for the synthetic rubber market.
Further key findings from the report suggest:
- The tyre application is expected to witness a CAGR of 1.7% from 2016 to 2025 owing to the rising demand from the automotive industry in emerging economies including China, India, and Brazil
- The global S-SBR market is expected to witness a CAGR of 8.8% from 2016 to 2025 as manufacturers are increasingly focusing on converting E-SBR plants into S-SBR manufacturing facilities
- The SBR market is driven by the rising demand from the Latin America and the Middle East & Africa regions owing to the increasing production of tires and the presence of numerous petrochemical companies across the region
- In October 2015, Kumho Petrochemical Company, under a joint venture with Sunny Plastics Co., Ltd., set up its third ABS plant in China to establish its foothold in the Chinese market
In June 2016, Versalis and LOTTE Chemical entered into a partnership to expand their presence in the Asian synthetic rubber industry