According to the American Chemistry Council’s Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI), growth in global chemistry during August continued on a solid pace but was weighed down by effects of Hurricane Harvey.

Global chemicals production rose 0.4 per cent in August, easing from a 0.5 per cent gain in July, as measured on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis. During August, production increased in Western Europe, Africa & the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region but was soft elsewhere. The Global CPRI was up 3.1 per cent year-over-year (Y/Y) on a 3MMA basis and stood at 111.5 per cent of its average 2012 levels in August.

During August, capacity utilization in the global business of chemistry rose 0.1 percentage points to 80.7 per cent. This is up from 80.3 per cent last August and is below the long-term (1987-2016) average of 88.8 per cent.

Results were generally positive on a product basis during August, with gains in pharmaceuticals, organic chemicals, plastic resins, manufactured fibers, coatings, and other specialty chemicals. Considering year-over-year comparisons, growth was strongest in coatings followed by pharmaceuticals and organic chemicals. ACC’s Global CPRI measures the production volume of the business of chemistry for 33 key nations, sub-regions, and regions, all aggregated to the world total.