Synthetic Rubber Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Growing Automotive & Transportation Industry – the increasing number of wheels with the growing production of motor vehicles worldwide is leading to the surging demand for tires and non-tires elastomer products. As per projections, there are more than 37 million wheels around the world. Moreover, the rising demand for lightweight vehicles as well as the growing production of electric vehicles (EVs) is further anticipated to boost the synthetic rubber market in the estimated time period. The physical and chemical properties of synthetic rubber polymers determine the overall tire performance in a vehicle including rolling resistance, wear, and traction.
• Surging Demand for Athletic Footwear – backed by the uptrend of sports & fitness amongst the young as well as middle age population around the globe the demand for an appropriate athletic shoe for preventing injuries is increasing. As per research conducted with few a sports respondents playing varied sports, it was found that the percentage of injured subjects was ~40% in 2019. This as a result is anticipated to boost the market’s growth.
• Emerging Demand for Healthcare & Medical Device Industry – The rapidly rising healthcare spending, as well as the growing medical device industry, is expected to boost the market growth as rubber in these industries is used to make various objects like surgical gloves, condoms, breathing bags, stoppers, cushioning materials, tubes, prosthetics, implants, catheters, and much more. The global health expenditure was found to reach ~9.8% of GDP in 2019. Additionally, the medical device industry in the United States is expected to generate ~USD 163 billion in 2023.
• Prospering Construction Industry – the global construction sector is booming with the increasing infrastructural development as well as rising demand for residential and commercial spaces worldwide. For instance, in the United States (U.S.) 1,406,000 new housing units were completed in January 2023, exhibiting around a 12.8% increase from January 2022. As the construction industry demands synthetic rubber for their utilization in elevator belts, hoses, seismic bearings tubes, and others, the market is projected to expand with the flourishing construction industry.

Challenges

• Concern about negative impact on environment – The stringent policies that govern the production and processing of synthetic rubber is anticipated to hamper the market growth. As per the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the primary sources of hazardous air pollutants (HAP) are sealants, rubber processing, and tire manufacturing facilities. Hence, there are a number of regulations for these industries, restraining the market growth.
• Ill-Effects on human health
• Availability of replacements such as polyurethanes