
American Plastics Industry Growth Remains Strong
The Plastics Industry Association (PLSTICS) recently released the 2017 Scale and Impact Report, which revealed that the outlook for the US plastics market is optimistic and expects the industry to grow.
The report pointed out that the US plastics industry has maintained a long-term prosperity and has a good basis for sustained growth.
William R. Carteaux, president and CEO of the Plastics Industry Association, said that the drop in value is not an important issue because output continues to grow.
Carteaux said in a webinar that the report was published: “In the past few years, the industry has been growing. There are many reasons for the current optimism of the manufacturing industry.”
The association’s report also includes a follow-up analysis of the plastics processors’ investment by the American Chemistry Council, pointing out that there are 560 investment projects for expansion or new construction, with Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Texas investing the most.
Carteaux said: “More and more people are now working in the plastics industry. This is evidence of the economic viability and innovation in the plastics industry.”
The Plastics Industry Association pointed out that employment in the US plastics industry will continue to grow, but the growth rate will decline in the coming years. The decline in growth rates is due to skills gaps and increasing shortages of qualified workers.
Therefore, the association reminds the United States that it is necessary to strengthen the training of workers and fill current and future jobs.
Dr. Perc Pineda, the chief economist of the Society of Plastics Industry, prepared the overall outlook for the plastics industry, as well as the digital projections of employment and shipments. Here are some key points:
- As the economy grows steadily, it is expected that the domestic domestic plastics market will continue to grow.
- The unfavorable factors are the shortage of skilled labor force, the maturity of motor vehicle replacement cycle, and the gap between the housing construction cycle and the sustainable peak level.
- The favorable factors are likely to be attributed to improved manufacturing trade, including new foreign-invested manufacturing plants in the United States and new plastic resin production facilities built in response to the new supply of hydrocarbon feedstock in the United States.
- Due to the shortage of labor, it is expected that all production plants, including those in the plastics industry, will increase investment in labor-saving equipment and technologies.
- It is expected that the real plastics industry shipments (after inflation correction) will increase by 2.0% in 2017, 2.2% in 2018, and 2.5% in 2019. The main reason for acceleration was the new resin installation in the United States.
At the same time, the recent U.S. federal tax reform is generally considered to be conducive to the development of U.S. manufacturing, including the plastics industry. Among these changes, reducing the corporate tax rate is clearly the most beneficial, which can increase the company’s revenue and strengthen its obligations in the United States.