Mushrooming Sales of Consumer Electronics Driving Liquid Crystal Polymer Demand

The burgeoning requirement for consumer electronic devices, on account of the booming population and the surging per capita income, especially in the developing countries such as India, Indonesia, Brazil, and China, is driving the demand for liquid crystal polymers (LCPs) across the world. With products such as smartphones, computers, microwaves, and iPhones rapidly becoming indispensable parts of households, the demand for LCPs is shooting up sharply all over the globe. 

This is because these polymers contribute heavily toward the development of these products, on account of their excellent mechanical and electrical properties. Moreover, the ballooning sales of these products are making companies such as Kuraray Co. Ltd., Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd., Celanese Corporation, and Toray Industries Inc. increase their LCP production and research and development (R&D) activities. Besides these factors, the soaring sales of automotive components and medical equipment are also fueling the demand for LCPs.

Due to the above-mentioned factors, the global liquid crystal polymer (LCP) market is exhibiting huge expansion. According to the estimates of P&S Intelligence, a market research company based in India, the value of the market will rise from $1,037.4 million in 2017 to $1,447.9 million by 2023. The market is also expected to progress at a CAGR of 5.7% between 2018 and 2023. Lyotropic and thermotropic are the two most widely used types of LCPs across the world. 

Automotive, consumer goods, medical, heavy engineering, power generation, and semiconductor and electronics are the major industries in which LCPs are heavily used. Amongst these, the semiconductor and electronics industry generated the highest demand for LCPs in the past years, due to the growing trend of downsizing and trimming of electrical components. Moreover, LCPs have various properties such as low power dissipation factors and low dielectric constants, which make them extremely suitable for use in the semiconductor and electronics industry. 

Many LCP producers such as Toray Industries Inc. and Kuraray Co. Ltd. are making huge investments in research and facility expansions. Across the globe, the sales of LCPs were observed to be the highest in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region during the last few years. This was because of the existence of semiconductor manufacturing hubs in the regional countries such as Japan, China, and Taiwan and a thriving consumer electronics industry in nations such as Vietnam and India. 

Hence, it can be safely said that the demand for LCPs will shoot up around the world in the coming years, primarily because of the surging sales of consumer electronics, automotive components, and medical equipment.

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