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Abstract |
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During the last decade, production of dyes in the United States (excluding fluorescent whitening agents), Western Europe and Japan decreased significantly, while production in Asian countries, particularly in China, increased. Consumption of dyes in Western Europe and Japan also decreased during the same period, while it increased primarily in China and other Asian countries including India, Thailand and Indonesia.
Consumption of dyestuffs is governed predominantly by several factors. The primary long-term factor is demand for textiles, leather and colored paper. Consumption of textiles, the largest end-use market for dyestuffs, in turn depends directly on population growth and private (consumer) spending levels. The most important short-term factor is fashion, which dictates the types of colors used. The quantity of dyestuffs consumed per volume of textile is considerably higher when bright or dark colors are desired in textiles than when only light colors are in demand. Hence, the colors used for textiles have an impact on the total consumption of dyestuffs. A lesser but still potentially important factor is the substitutability of organic pigments for dyes, particularly in the textile printing segment but also in other segments such as plastics and inks. On the other hand, specialty dyestuffs may also substitute for pigments in selected markets; an example is the dyeing of modified polypropylene fibers, which are normally pigmented.
In recent years, new legislation has affected dyestuff producers’ product portfolios. For instance, the European Commission banned many azo dyes in 2002 and navy blue (a chromate-based azo dye, one of the most widely used dyes in the leather industry) in June 2004. REACH (an EU regulation of chemicals), which was enacted in 2007, also affects consumption of synthetic dyes.
The following pie chart shows world consumption of dyes:
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Annual per capita consumption of dyes had been considerably greater in the United States (more than 500 grams per person) than in developing countries (e.g., India’s per capita consumption is around 50 grams per year) until the early 2000s, reflecting greater per capita consumption of textiles in industrialized countries. However, per capita consumption of textiles is growing at a faster rate in China, India and other developing countries than in the developed countries. Consequently, dye consumption will also grow at a faster rate in the developing countries as their populations increase and exports of dyed textiles to developed countries continue to grow.
During the last decade, the worldwide dyestuff industry has been characterized by significant oversupply, resulting in severe pressure on prices. As a result, most dyestuffs producers have suffered significant financial losses and major restructuring has taken place, especially in the United States, Western Europe and East Asia including Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan. The current situation is not expected to change dramatically, as most small to medium-sized players, particularly in Asia (including Indonesia and Thailand), are expected to continue to produce regardless of financial returns. On the demand side, significant and sustainable growth of the dyestuffs market can be expected only in Asia. The migration of low- and medium-quality textile production (as well as for the leather industry) to lower-cost countries is expected to continue, demanding further and often painful adjustments for international dyestuff producers. Another important factor that has affected producers in the more industrialized countries is the rising cost of disposing of relatively high quantities of hazardous organic wastes generated during production. Thus, international traditional dyestuff producers shifted and/or migrated their production facilities to Southeast Asian countries and China during the past two decades. However, ownership of these producers has been ever changing in recent years.
The dyestuff industry clearly faces numerous challenges in this decade, but ample opportunities will also present themselves for the most agile and innovative producers. |
