Every year, Ringier Trade Media Ltd, in its various verticals and print publications bring readers a special report called Outlook 2014. The report gathers the insights of key industry players and professionals on the trends and developments in the industry in the coming year.
The November issue of the International Plastics News - Middle East & Africa carries the Outlook 2014 reports for both plastic and rubber. The Middle East and Africa regions
continue to receive favourable projections, a sign of stability and continuous
confidence on these regions’ ability to achieve groawth despite the many
challenges the global economy faces.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
raised its forecast for the oil-rich six Gulf Arab countries to 4.4% in 2014,
up from the earlier projection of 3.78%, as it expects the Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) to remain one of the most dynamic and top performing economies.
The GCC comprises of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United
Arab Emirates (UAE).Oil and gas receipts represent the bulk of their revenues.
The IMF also recognises the strong contribution of the GCC to the global
economy and overall world industrial growth.
As a result, major industries in the
Middle East are expected to demonstrate highe rthan- expected performance in
2014. In particular, the plastics industry in the Middle East will continue
being a major contributor to industrial expansion given the anticipated rise in
the production volume for chemicals and other raw materials, as well as
increased demand for new technologies, machinery, tools and components as local
manufacturers step up their production output.
Africa is poised to take off as an
industrial giant with growth driven by investment inflows, rising production
output and expanding international trade. The IMF even predicts sub-Saharan
Africa to post 6% growth in 2014. Contributing to Africa’s growth are South
Africa and the emerging economies of Nigeria, Mozambique, Ethiopia and Kenya.
Nigeria’s economy is expected to grow by 7% in 2014; Mozambique by 8%; Ethiopia
by 6.9%; and Kenya at 5.2%.The continent’s rapidly growing plastics industry is
attracting an increasing number of international companies into this lucrative
new market. Estimates show that the demand for plastic packaging in Africa has
been growing by around 8%, higher than in Western Europe. South Africa’s
booming plastics production leads the region, but growing demand has been noted
in other African countries due to rising infrastructure, energy,
telecommunications and manufacturing activities.
