Entries from Chemicals & The Economy tagged with 'downturn'
Green shoots disappear as new reality dawns
Sentiment is a very important influence in markets. When positive, as it has been since March, traders tend to 'look through' today's problems to a brighter future. But at some point, reality needs to confirm this optimism. The IeC Boom/Gloom...
Recovery to be "weak by historical standards" - IMF
The good news is that the IMF thinks that the economy may have stopped getting worse. The bad news is that it thinks it may be a long time before we get back to earlier levels of demand. The main...
Benzene signals a market top
As regular readers will know, the blog believes benzene is a good leading indicator for chemical demand, due to its widespread use in the industry. Last November saw its price "on the floor", indicating a major downturn, and it remained...
Global downsizing needed to rebalance supply and demand
The chemical industry has benefited from a benign paradigm over the past 25 years: • Demographics in the west have encouraged consumption, as the baby-boom generation reached middle age • Globalisation meant this could be achieved at lower cost, by...
The "crystal blog"
The blog's forecasting record is reviewed in ICIS Chemical Business this week. Click here if you would like a copy. The blog's aim is to "highlight relevant information for the busy executive, and to provide relevant and actionable analysis of...
US auto sales collapse in June
'Collapse' is not a word that should be used lightly in business. But there is no other way to describe June's US auto sales figures:...
Growth slowdown underway
The OECD produces useful leading indicators each month, which try to capture turning points in the global economy. Its industrial production indicator is very relevant to chemicals, as 85% of demand comes from this sector. The latest outlook is...
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