Resins Market Panel Discussion

How did the resins market perform in 2009? How did this compare to 2008 and what are your predictions for this year?

Uwe Liebelt, group vice president, dispersions and pigments, BASF North America: The market for resins in 2009 was strongly influenced by the respective markets in which the end products are used. Products commonly used for printing, packaging, construction and general industrial applications were subject to the continued weak market conditions in these segments. Some of these markets were temporarily down as much as 40 percent or more in 2009 versus 2008.

Others such as the do-it-yourself (DIY) market segment didn't suffer that much because customers changed their consumption pattern. For example, instead of buying or building new homes, money was spent on repairs and renovations.

We definitely have seen the demand side improving during the first months of 2010 versus 2009. It seems as though this improvement goes beyond a simple refilling of the pipeline and we are confident that it will continue throughout 2010. However, different market segments will recover at different paces. In some areas, such as the publication