BASF recently predicted that by 2015, the global plastics market will continue to grow at an average annual rate of 5%, because urbanization and globalization have become the trend of the times, and energy demand and climate protection measures have also driven the growing demand for plastic products. Therefore, the company is planning to further expand its investment in the plastics industry.

BASF said that plastics are playing an increasingly important role in various industrial fields, and Asia will become the world's fastest growing demand for plastics. Since 2007, the consumption of plastics in Asia has exceeded the sum of Europe and North America. Therefore, in the future, BASF will focus on investing in new plants and R&D facilities in Asia. In order to meet the growing demand for specialty plastics, BASF will also expand the production capacity of biodegradable plastics and build a new polyurethane plant in Shanghai. Plastics can be used not only for building insulation but also for manufacturing because it is more energy efficient than other materials. For example, the use of plastic substitute steel in the manufacture of automotive parts can reduce the weight of the car and help reduce fossil fuel consumption. In Western Europe, the proportion of plastics in automobile manufacturing has grown from 6% in 1970 to about 15% now, and it is expected that this proportion will rise to more than 25% by 2020. Currently in China, the amount of plastic used in the automotive industry is only about half that of Europe, and the use of high-grade engineering plastics is even lower.