Asia-Pacific region to propel global demand for amines in cleaning products

The global demand for amines used in cleaning products is expected to increase 4.4 percent per annum to 1.6 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2020 from 1.28 MMT in 2015, according to a new study from the Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based market research firm. Growth is expected to be fuelled by rising populations and per capita incomes in developing economies, especially in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, where consumers with improved earning capacity are turning to higher-performance cleaning products that more often use amines in their formulation.  

Comparatively rapid gains in the developing countries of Asia will be offset somewhat by slow amine demand growth in North America, Western Europe, and Japan, as these areas will contend with slower economic growth and overall market maturity. 

In more developed nations, cleaning product markets will be influenced by a number of trends, including the need for milder and more environmentally compatible cleaning products. “Amphoteric surfactants will see increased use, which will benefit demand for amines,” commented Jason Carnovale, analyst, Freedonia.  However, specialty amine-based surfactants are already used in many cleaning products in these markets, so the opportunities for additional market penetration will be limited.

Because of overall slow growth in cleaning product demand in these countries, related amine demand growth will increase only modestly. This situation is different in emerging markets, where a greater share of cleaning products - and to an extent, personal care products - are based on lower value commodity surfactants.  

“Fatty amines see the greatest use among amine types in the cleaning products market. Fatty amines are intermediates used in the production of most types of amine surfactants, which in turn are used in a variety of detergents, general cleaners, and specialised cleaning products,” added Freedonia in a press statement.