Plastic Industry Faces Backlash That Threatens Chemical Makers

  • IHS Sees weaker global economy, oversupply hurting profits
  • Rise of recycling is eroding demand growth for new resins
Photographer: Jean Chung/Bloomberg
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The chemical industry is heading for a slowdown as society turns against disposable plastics and the rise of recycling weakens demand, IHS Markit predicted at its annual World Petrochemical Conference.

After climbing to multi-year highs, chemical earnings will drop this year and won’t recover until 2023 as environmental issues add to the drag from a downturn in the global economy, according to the global research firm.