Global Styrenic Polymers Market Size By Product (Polystyrene (PS), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), Expanded Polystyrene (EPS)), By Application (Building and construction, Automotive industry, Packaging), By Geographic Scope And Forecast

Styrenic Polymers Market Size And Forecast

Styrenic Polymers Market size was valued at USD 3.72 Billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 6.34 Billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 6.90% from 2024 to 2031.

The prominent driving factors for the market growth are the increasing use of styrene polymers in the automotive industry. The demand for plastics in this industry is increasing on account of the growing concerns over the reduction of the overall weight of automobiles and thereby meeting the stringent emission regulations. The Global Styrenic Polymers Market report provides a holistic evaluation of the market. The report offers a comprehensive analysis of key segments, trends, drivers, restraints, competitive landscape, and factors that are playing a substantial role in the market.

Global Styrenic Polymers Market Definition

Styrenic polymers are the economical plastics that make up a family of major plastic products with styrene as their key building block. These polymers can be easily processed well above their softening point and also over a wide temperature range due to their amorphous structure. Styrenic polymers do not have a distinct melting point as compared to other partly crystalline polymers. This allows not only faster processing of these polymers but also high dimensional stability and excellent mechanical properties.

Examples of styrene polymers are polystyrene, expandable polystyrene, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer, and acrylonitrile-styrene-Acrylate copolymer, as well as blends of these polymers with polyphenylene ether (PPE) and polycarbonate (PC). Styrenic polymers are used to produce a variety of household goods such as cups, utensils, furniture, kitchen appliances; consumer electronics; automobile parts; sports and recreational equipment; boats; and durable, lightweight packaging products. Styrenic polymers are widely used across the automotive industry, packaging, construction, and electronic appliances.

These polymers are rapidly replacing metallic parts across various end-user industries. A variety of styrene polymers such as SMMA, ABS, SAN, MABS, SBCs, MBS, etc. are employed in medical applications. Polystyrene is among the most common polymer types of styrene copolymer and constitutes a major chunk of the overall medical Styrenic Polymers Market mainly due to several excellent properties such as aesthetics, color stability, and melt flow consistency among others. The other most commonly used styrene polymers are SEBS and ABS. Styrenic polymers are widely used in containers, IV solution bags, packaging, fabrics, and other applications such as tubing, multi-flow devices, etc.

Medical packaging constitutes a major chunk which accounts for approximately 20% of the total medical styrenic polymers in 2019. Medical packaging includes packaging for pharmaceutical capsules, tablets, liquids, ointments, powders, and creams, as well as for overwrapping medical devices via material made up of ABS, polystyrene, SBS, MBS, SEBS, etc. These growing applications of styrenic polymers in medical devices will positively impact the medical styrenic polymer’s market share throughout the forecast period. However, the high price of styrenic polymers is projected to be a major factor restraining the overall market during the assessment period.

Global Styrenic Polymers Market Overview

Increasing the use of styrenic polymers in place of PVC across the healthcare industry is predominantly fueling the market growth. Due to various potential health threats associated with PVC, there is a restriction on the use of PVC materials. This is creating demand for plastic such as styrene polymers as they exhibit excellent mechanical performance. Moreover, these polymers also offer easy disposability, design versatility, lightweight, and better aesthetics. All these properties of styrenic polymers are propelling the market growth. The growing use of styrene polymers in the medical industry for developing high-performance and miniaturized medical devices is propelling market growth.

Medical devices can be easily micro-molded by using such plastics. The high price of styrenic polymers compared to other thermoplastic materials is projected to hinder the market growth. Polystyrene and ABS are two major materials that have a high price. For example, the average price of ABS is almost three times that of the lowest-priced PVC. The volatile price of crude oil due to the political scenario as raw materials used in the manufacturing of styrenic polymers are derived from crude oil is expected to hamper the market growth. The growing use of styrenic polymers for producing medical devices such as the storage of IV fluids, blood bags, dialysis solutions, and tubing is expected to offer lucrative opportunities.

Robust demand for thermoplastic elastomers from the medical and healthcare industry is creating profitable opportunities for the Styrenic Polymers Market. Increasing R&D by manufacturers to explore more properties of styrenic polymers is projected to bring new market opportunities over the forecast period. Growing demand for technically advanced and more flexible products is encouraging manufacturers to invest in the R & D to develop more innovative products. Thus growing investment in R &D by manufacturers is projected to offer enormous potential opportunities over the forecast period.

Market Attractiveness

The image of market attractiveness provided would further help to get information about the region that is majorly leading in the Global Styrenic Polymers Market. We cover the major impacting factors that are responsible for driving the industry growth in the given region.

Porter’s Five Forces

The image provided would further help to get information about Porter’s five forces framework providing a blueprint for understanding the behavior of competitors and a player’s strategic positioning in the respective industry. The porter’s five forces model can be used to assess the competitive landscape in the Global Styrenic Polymers Market, gauge the attractiveness of a certain sector, and assess investment possibilities.

Global Styrenic Polymers Market Segmentation Analysis

The Global Styrenic Polymers Market is segmented on the basis of Product, Application, and Geography.

Styrenic Polymers Market, By Product

• Polystyrene (PS)
• Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS)
• Expanded Polystyrene (EPS)
• Unsaturated Polyester Resin (UPR)
• Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR)
• Other Polymers

Based on Product, the market is segmented into Polystyrene (PS), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), Expanded Polystyrene (EPS), Unsaturated Polyester Resin (UPR), Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR), and Other Polymers. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene held a market share of over 12% in terms of revenue in 2019 and is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the review period. The other medical Styrenic Polymers Market segment includes Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate (ASA), Styrene Isoprene Butadiene Styrene (SIBS), Unsaturated Polyester Resin (UPR), etc. ASA exhibits similar properties to ABS such as high gloss, good chemical and heat resistance, and high impact strength at low temperatures hence are widely used in medical devices across the globe.

Styrenic Polymers Market, By Application

• Building and construction
• Automotive industry
• Packaging
• Medical
• Electrical and electronics
• Consumer goods
• Others

Based on Application, the market is segmented into Building and construction, Automotive industry, Packaging, Medical, Electrical and electronics, Consumer goods, and Others. The medical instruments segment includes medical drip chambers, dry powder inhalers, diagnostic instruments, disposable laboratory ware, Petri dishes, tissue culture components, flasks, pipettes, etc. The growing demand for styrenic polymers in these applications shall substantially contribute to the growth of the medical Styrenic Polymers Market segment during the forecast period.

Moreover, the ongoing pandemic across the globe has further propelled the demand for medical instruments in turn boosting the demand for medical styrenic polymers. The aforementioned trends along with stringent regulations against using harmful polymer materials have triggered demand for styrene-based polymers in medical instruments which shall further generate a substantial gain for the Styrenic Polymers Market.

Styrenic Polymers Market, By Geography

• North America
• Europe
• Asia Pacific
• Rest of the world

On the basis of Geography, the Global Styrenic Polymers Market is classified into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the world. The largest share of the market will be dominated by North America. This can be attributed to growing healthcare spending in the North American region. Moreover, the presence of strict healthcare standards and regulations has resulted in the substitution of conventional metallic devices for thermoplastic elastomers owing to their easy processability and their compliance with environmental regulations. The North American market was closely followed by the European market and shall exhibit similar growth trends.

Key Players

The “Global Styrenic Polymers Market” study report will provide valuable insight with an emphasis on the global market including some of the major players such as BASF, Lanxess AG, SABIC, Total S.A., The Dow Chemical Company, Chevron Philips Chemical Company, Chi Mei Corporation, Nova Chemicals Corporation, Asahi Kasei Corporation, and Styron LLC. The competitive landscape section also includes key development strategies, market share, and market ranking analysis of the above-mentioned players globally.

Key Developments

• In March 2021, Chevron made it to the headlines by striking an agreement to acquire Noble Midstream Partners and its affiliates aiming to widen its product portfolio to expand its customer base.
• In March 2021, Ineos Styrolution offers its first styrenic polymers that are based on renewable styrene monomers.
• In June 2020, Aramco broke out the news of a successful acquisition of a 70% stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) to widen its services.
• In July 2020, Chevron Corporation and Algonquin struck an agreement to develop new projects that are expected to be an asset across Chevron’s global portfolio.
• In November 2020, SABIC and Vopak Holding Terminals BV penned a partnership with Jubail and Yanbu Industrial Cities Co. (JYIC). As per the agreement, strategic integration among the three parties is expected to scale up the scope of collaboration between local and international organizations.
• In June 2019, BASF publicly shook hands with NGK and entered into a sales agreement to widen its product portfolio.

Ace Matrix Analysis

The Ace Matrix provided in the report would help to understand how the major key players involved in this industry are performing as we provide a ranking for these companies based on various factors such as service features & innovations, scalability, innovation of services, industry coverage, industry reach, and growth roadmap. Based on these factors, we rank the companies into four categories as Active, Cutting Edge, Emerging, and Innovators.