By John Richardson THE US is a deeply politically divided country to the point where the divisions are having a profound effect on consumer confidence. As the New York Times writes: Among Republicans, the University of Michigan consumer expectations index was at 61.1 in October, the kind of reading typically reported in the depths of a […]
Asian Chemical Connections
A World In Crisis: Tackling Basic Needs Is The Solution
By John Richardson ALL SORTS of experts keep telling us that identifying the world’s problems is incredibly complex. But it, is in, fact, incredibly simple – all you have to do is to meet Basic Needs such as coping with ageing populations and providing sufficient water, electricity, shelter, healthcare and education. Satisfying these needs does, however, require the […]
Here Is Another “One Billion Consumers”: The Over 55s
By John Richardson FOR too many years people have shuffled from one board meeting to the next, and one conference to the next, in order to talk meaninglessly about “the rise of China’s middle classes” and “one billion Chinese consumers”. Why the talk has essentially been meaningless is because firstly, people bother to try and […]
The West Is Becoming “Cash Poor And Time Rich”
By John Richardson Consumers in the West are moving from being ‘cash rich and time poor” to being “cash poor and time rich”. The reason is that Western fertility rates have below replacement level (2.1 babies/woman) for 45 years since 1970, meaning there are relatively fewer Wealth Creators. Another problem is the pension pot in […]
How 3D Printing Means No Repeat Of China’s Growth Story
By John Richardson AS you can see from the above chart, China’s percentage share of the global polypropylene (PP) market has risen from 15% of consumption in 2000 to 33% in 2014. During the same period, however, India’s share of worldwide consumption only rose from 7% to 9%. This kind of chart is used as […]
Ageing Populations And Fitting Two Billion Into One Billion
By John Richardson THE above chart is of absolutely critical importance for anybody who is serious about estimating both the strength and nature of future global demand growth for chemicals. If you are not a serious analysts then, sure, ignore demographics and cling on to a few vacuous slogans such as the “rise of the […]
IMF New Study Highlights Critical Role Of Demographics
By John Richardson IT is fantastic news that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has highlighted ageing populations as a major drag on global growth in its latest World Economic Outlook update. The IMF warns that employment growth will decline in both advanced and emerging economies compared to the rates seen before the global financial crisis. […]
Demographics And “The Internet Of Things”
A DECADE from now, you might wake up in the morning and: Step on scales that quickly shoot data to a service provider that helps you decide how long and hard to exercise on the treadmill that day. Brush your teeth with a toothbrush that sends data to a local dentist. This will give early […]
3D Printing Likely To Change Just About Everything
By John Richardson 3D printing will very probably force manufacturers, including those who make chemicals and polymers, to build entirely new business models. Here is why: The young in Western societies will be poorer because of less aggregate demand as a result of the retirement of the Babyboomers. They will need to save a lot […]
The Trickle-Down Effect….Again
By John Richardson THE classic image of the high-school student flipping Big Macs has become out of date in the US, according to this New York Times article. “Because of lingering unemployment and a relative abundance of fast-food jobs, older workers are increasingly entering the industry ,” adds the NYT. “These days, according to the […]
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