China's Investment in Petrochemical Industry Up 33.7% in First Four Months of 2012

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--China's investment in the petrochemical sector reached about $51.61 billion in the first four months of 2012, an increase of 33.7% year over year, which is about four percentage points higher than the total fixed-asset investment growth for the period. The investment in oil refining reached $6.45 billion, an increase of 36.4% year over year; that of the Chemical Industry reached $42.64 billion, an increase of 32% year over year, according to the Operation Report on Petrochemical Industry, issued by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on May 3.

From January through April 2012, the petrochemical industry had 7,916 projects under construction, an increase of 4.5% year over year. The number of new construction projects reached 3,545, an increase of 11.3% year over year. The higher number of new construction projects showed that the industrial structural adjustment had been enhanced under the current weak market situation. In specific projects, the investment in high-end manufacturing was largely increased. The investment in synthetic materials was up 59.2% year over year, and that for special-purpose equipment was up 61.2% year over year.

From January through April 2012, the petrochemical industry of China continued a trend of lower growth. The cumulative production value of the petrochemical sector reached $533.37 billion, and the growth was further reduced to 14.7% year over year from 22.1% in December 2011. During the four-month period, the value added to the petrochemical industry was up about 10% year over year. Of which, the growth in oil refining was up about 5.3% and 12.4% for the chemical industry.

From January to April 2012, the output of major petrochemical products, except ethylene maintained stable growth. Of which, the processing volume of product oil reached 152.83 million metric tons (MMT), an increase of 2.9%, the output of product oil reached 92.4 MMT, an increase of 5.3% year over year; that of synthetic resin reached 16.77 MMT, up 7.7%; that of synthetic rubber reached 1.22 MMT, up 6%; that of chemical fertilizers reached 23.46 MMT, up 15.3%; that of pesticides reached 1.18 MMT, up 23.7%; that of tires reached 260.2 million pieces, up 3.9%; that of ethylene reached 5.13 MMT, a declined of 2.3% year over year.

(Note: Calculated based on the exchange rate of $1=CNY 6.3) Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.