Industry

In a new European Economic Forecast, the European Commission expects a deeper recession and a slower recovery for the economy of the Union. However, the blow caused by the pandemic differs from country to country with some states and industries expected to recover faster due to internal factors.

The chemical industry is one of the pillars of the European economy. The industry has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The report of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC) provides performance for the chemical industry in the first quarter of 2020, in particular, the dynamics of industrial production, sales of goods, foreign trade.

This short-term outlook edition coincides with the unfolding of the Covid-19 crisis, making the exercise exceptionally challenging. Market forecasts are based on market intelligence available at the beginning of April 2020 and reflect the Covid-19 impact to the extent possible, with all the caveats and limitations in view of the rapidly evolving situation. In addition, for the first time market outlooks are presented for EU-27, and assume a frictionless trade between the EU and the UK in 2020.

The EU is the largest chemicals supplier after China. Chemical products bear specific features defining the rules and the means of their transportation.