Source of picture: http://whyfiles.org/ By John Richardson MY colleague Nigel Davis has written an excellent Insight article which highlights how some chemicals companies are seeking to respond to changing patterns. As we have discussed before, Bayer Material Science is adapting its portfolio of products in response to the megatrends – demographics, energy conservation, […]
Asian Chemical Connections
Planning For New Growth Patterns
By John Richardson “Have you noticed that your parents spend less money than you do?” asks Merryn Somerset Webb in this Financial Times article. She agrees with us that the answer is, of course, “Yes”. This very neatly brings the issue down to a personal level, one that all of us can relate to, and […]
Dow and DuPont Make Major Job Cuts
Dupont’s Ellen Kullman By John Richardson Dow Chemical’s decision to cut 2,400 jobs, as it posted a 32% drop in earnings per share, was the result of what CEO Andrew Liveris said was difficult conditions that “may have extended staying power, as the new reality is that we are operating in a slow-growth and […]
The End Of Growth
By John Richardson OUR e-book, Boom Gloom & The New Normal, is a set of ideas meant to challenge conventional wisdom. Some of our ideas will need to be adapted and discarded. But our essential point is that the New Normal represents a way of thinking as much as a set of ideas, because the world has […]
China Politics
In the last of our series of blog posts on some of the major challenges facing China’s economy over the next 12-18 months, we look at politics. By John Richardson THE outcome of the battle over China’s economic direction is, of course, of crucial importance to the world economy. It would be comforting […]
The Water Challenge
Source of picture: BBC By John Richardson By 2050, the world’s 10 biggest river basins by population are expected to produce a quarter of global GDP, according to a report commissioned by HSBC, which was released in June. The figure is greater than the combined future economies of the US, Japan and Germany – and […]
China’s Demographic Crisis
Chinese govt poster promoting the one-child policy By John Richardson IF all you can remember is strong emerging markets growth, then it is easy to be misled into only building into your scenarios the notion that China and India are merely pausing for economic breath. Conventional wisdom remains that this is, decidedly, the […]
Global Economy Loses Suspension
By John Richardson ISN’T it interesting how when you talk to someone involved in a petrochemicals project, either publicly or privately, their project is very often sufficiently to the left of the cost curve to gain a winning advantage over competitors? Discussions are almost entirely about feedstock advantage, production and logistics efficiency and location etc. Thus was […]
North America Manufacturing Rebound
By John Richardson THIS fascinating slide from Accenture, in a new study that the consultancy is about to release on the rebound in North American manufacturing competitiveness, quantifies the steep rise in relative labour costs in China between 2001 and 2011. And this process is likely to accelerate as China attempts to narrow the […]
A Road Map For Success
The new chapter of our free ‘Boom, Gloom and the New Normal’ ebook sets out a road map to success for companies in the New Normal. It also identifies 5 key areas where major change is already underway. Demand-driven. Markets have essentially been supply-driven in recent decades, with growth being forecast on the basis of […]
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