The production of primary polymers in Germany decreased by 15 over the year%
The production of primary polymers in Germany decreased by 15 over the year%
The production of plastics in primary forms in Germany by the end of 2023 fell by 15.3% compared to the previous year, and sales of the industry decreased by 21.9%. At the same time, the polymer industry is not expected to recover soon in 2024, representatives of the PlasticsEurope Deutschland Association (PED) said at a press conference in Frankfurt.
"This is, without a doubt, the worst economic crisis since the emergence of our industry. Currently, we assume that polymer production will also stagnate this year and remain about 25% below the level of 2022. The goal of the entire plastics recycling chain should now be to make important strategic and structural adjustments to get out of the crisis sooner," said Ralph Dussel, CEO of PED.
The demand for polymers from German manufacturers in 2023 decreased by about 16% compared to 2022. Earlier, in 2022, the industry had already recorded a sharp decline. This shows that the difficult economic situation is also putting pressure on many consumer industries. German industry is facing a widespread demand problem in many sectors.
Nevertheless, the association is cautiously optimistic about the upcoming regulatory projects that can give a positive impetus to German and European plastics production.