Cefic: European chemical industry business confidence picks up

Recently, the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) cited the European Commission's latest business and consumer survey results, saying that business confidence in the European chemical industry picked up for the second consecutive month in January.

Cefic said: "The significant reduction in energy costs and the positive development of managers' production expectations will ensure a steady recovery of our business in the coming months. So far, the sentiment of the business environment has not been reflected in the demand growth."

Cefic said that from January to November 2022, European chemical production fell by 5.1% year-on-year. Throughout 2022, there will be a decoupling between European chemical production and other manufacturing industries, mainly due to the sharp increase in energy costs. In November 2022, EU chemical production was 12% lower than in March 2022, with similar volume performance, Cefic said. Cefic added that affected by the economic recession in Europe and weakening demand in China, from March to September 2022, the momentum of the EU chemical foreign trade environment will rapidly weaken.

According to the chemical trend report released by Cefic, from January to October 2022, the inventory level of the EU chemical industry has increased, which is considered to be "too high" compared with the "normal level". Stockpiles of finished chemicals are near record levels seen during the pandemic, Cefic said.