International news

The tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on a range of products from Canada, Mexico, China and Europe, which came into effect a few days ago, are causing concern at the Plastics Industry Association in the US because of the potential impact in terms of higher prices for raw materials, as well as...

In an open letter sent to European politicians in recent days, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, President and CEO of Ineos, warns of the possible “extinction” of the chemical industry in the Old Continent. The chemical industry in Europe has been hugely important to the success of the European economy over the last century...

Adnoc (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) and OMV have signed an agreement to combine their respective stakes in Borealis and Borouge to create a new company, Borouge Group International, which will acquire Nova Chemicals Corporation for 13.4 billion dollars...

Kraton Corporation, a global producer of specialty polymers and high-value biobased products, announced the appointment of Prakash Kolluri as President of the Polymer Business. Kolluri’s leadership will drive Kraton’s continued growth, innovation, and expansion into high-value markets. Kolluri brings a...

Husky Technologies announced the appointment of Balaji Suresh to Chief Operations Officer (COO). With over two decades of experience in global manufacturing, supply chain, and operational leadership, Balaji Suresh brings a wealth of expertise to Husky at a pivotal moment in the company’s growth journey...

Illig packaging solutions has made a change in management with effect from 15 January 2025. Matthias Holder has taken over the dual position of Chief Sales Officer/Chief Technology Officer from Jürgen Lochner, who is leaving the Heilbronn-based company after several years to pursue new career opportunities...

The Chinese manufacturer of injection moulding machines Haitian has almost completed the construction of its new production site in Ruma, Serbia, which is expected to be finished by March 2025. Construction began with the laying of the foundation stone in 2023 and is currently on schedule...

On 5 February, the US company Hillebrad entered into a definitive agreement to sell an ownership stake of approximately 51% in its Milacron injection moulding and extrusion business to an affiliate of Bain Capital for 287 million dollars. The Company will retain an ownership stake of approximately 49%...

Plastics Industry Association expresses concern about new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration in recent days on products from Canada, Mexico and China. The plastics industry recognizes the importance of securing national borders and combating illegal drug trafficking to protect...

Following the publication of the Competitiveness Compass by European Commission, which outlines a new approach to competition policy and announces measures to close the innovation gap, reduce bureaucracy, and speed up approval processes, Marco Mensink, Cefic Director General, stated...

The European Commission presented the “Competitiveness Compass”, the first major initiative of this mandate providing a strategic and clear framework to steer the Commission's work. The Compass sets a path for Europe to become the place where future technologies, services, and clean products are...

Festo celebrates its centenary creating added value for customers through innovation, which has been the driving force behind the family-owned company from the very beginning and remains the key to Festo's success today. With its constant determination to make people's work easier and thus increase efficiency...

With over 1.2 million of workers, 655 billion euros of turnover, and 10.2 billion euros of investments in research and innovation, the European chemical industry is a wealth generating sector of the economy and a major contributor to building a sustainable future for Europe...

Nissei Plastic Industrial, Japanese company headquartered in Nagano, Japan, has been strengthening its global production network. The factory expansion of its US production base in Texas, United States, is now complete, and the added building will be operational from February 2025. As a...

The decline in industrial production in the EU and especially in Germany led to a decline in demand for plastics from customer industries in the third quarter of 2024. The German plastics industry recorded a corresponding decline in economic indicators. According to the...

Celanese Corporation announced a new addition to its Executive Leadership Team. Todd Elliott, a proven executive who retired from Celanese in 2020 as Senior Vice President and head of the Acetyls business, will return to the Company as Senior Vice President to lead the Engineered Materials business, effective...

Netstal has founded its own subsidiary in Mexico for sales and customer service. The new company is based in Santiago de Querétaro and is taking over the existing employees and Netstal business operations of iTech Latinoamérica, which previously represented the brand in Mexico as...

The Plastics Industry Association has announced a series of new hires and promotions within its Executive Leadership Team, including Angela Mealy, joining Plastics Industry Association as Executive Director of NPE: The Plastics Show (organized by the association itself)...

Effective 1 February 2025, Yun Chen will take over the leadership of European production for Covestro's Performance Materials Business Entity. In this position, he succeeds Daniel Koch, who is leaving the company at the end of January at his own request. In his nearly 30 years of experience...

Cefic launched its competitiveness study confirming and emphasising the severity of the situation for the EU chemicals industry; over 11 million tons of capacity have already been announced to be closed for 2023-2024, affecting 21 major sites. By delving into the current state of the European chemical industry and...