Titanium dioxide in plastic applications

According to a special report, it is expected that the application of titanium dioxide (Ti02) in plastics will increase by 3.2% in 2003; plastic remains the most important and largest market for titanium dioxide.
The company predicts that, at least until 2007, the market demand for titanium dioxide as colorants, opacifiers and self-stabilizers for PE, PP and PVC will grow at an average annual rate of 2.9%. The fastest in the Asia Pacific region was 3.5%.
The global demand for titanium dioxide colorants totaled about 400,000 tons last year. North America has the largest market share, accounting for 37%; followed by Europe, 31%; Asia-Pacific, 24%; and the rest of the world, 8%. In recent years, the total consumption of titanium dioxide downstream consumer industries has led to a drop in the price of titanium dioxide. The report expects that the price of titanium dioxide will gradually rise and reach a peak in 2004, but it may still be lower than $2,500/ton.