MARKETS

Hitox titanium pigment prices raised

Hitox buff-coloured titanium pigments,
a proprietary range of products
derived by milling synrutile imported
from a captively owned plant in
Malaysia, are typically used as
substitutes or supplements to
conventional TiO
2
pigments in
applications requiring high opacity. Tor
Minerals, the supplier, announces
price changes rather less frequently
than the major suppliers of
conventional TiO
2
pigments. The
company also has a better track-
record of success in implementing its
price increases.
It raised its prices for Hitox titanium
pigments in January 2008 and it has
just announced a $0.05 per pound
price increase, effective as from 1
July 2008. The company is also
optimistic about the potential for its
newly introduced Tioprem range of
titanium pigments in orange, beige,
brown and grey.
Press Release from: Tor Minerals International, 722
Burleson Street, Corpus Christi, TX 78402, USA.
Website: http://www.torminerals.com (2 Jul 2008)
Japans organic pigment consumption
at just over 47,000 tonnes/y
Japans total production of organic
pigments has hovered within the
range 34,000-36,000 tonnes/y for
more than six years now, with a gentle
long-term decline in azo pigments and
lakes being offset by increases in
phthalocyanines and high-
performance pigments.
Japan: Organic Pigments Output
(000 tonnes)
2006 2007
Total 35.8 34.4
Azo (insoluble) 8.4 8.3
Azo (soluble) 10.9 10.5
Phthalocyanine 15.6 14.7
Quinones, et al 0.7 0.8
Lakes 0.1 0.1
Source: Japan Dyestuff & Industrial
Chemical Association
Exports increased by 6% last year
from 10,600 tonnes to 11,300 tonnes,
spread across a number of markets,
but they are still much lower than the
20,000 tonnes/y of the late 1990s.
Imports of organic pigments went
up from 21,100 tonnes in 2006 to set
a new record at 24,100 tonnes in
2007, with Chinese suppliers
providing 6500 tonnes and Indian
suppliers 4000 tonnes. Japans
organic pigment consumption showed
a slight rise to just over 47,000 tonnes
last year, the end-use sector
breakdown being roughly: 60% for
printing inks, 20% for paints and 20%
for plastics. The organic pigment
content of printing inks is typically 15-
20%, compared against 5% in plastics
and 1% for plastics. Hence, although
the volume of inks produced is much
lower than the volume of paints or
plastics, trends in the inks sector have
a significant effect on organic pigment
consumption.
Generally speaking, the pigments
used for the three primary printing
colours are: diazo pigments for
yellow; soluble azo pigments for
magenta; and phthalocyanine for
cyan. The countrys production of
printing inks dipped by 1.4% last year,
reaching 448,000 tonnes, essentially
reflecting the sluggishness of Japans
economy. There is an ongoing shift
away from mineral oils towards
soybean and other vegetable oils in
litho inks, but soybean oil prices
began to soar last year mainly as a
consequence of the US bioethanol
boom. Japans organic pigment
manufacturers have also faced
steeply rising costs and shortages of
key raw materials arising from the
Chinese Governments stringent
restrictions on the production and
export of organic chemical
intermediates and metal compounds.
Although volumes are currently
relatively small, growth rates are high
for the consumption of organic
pigments in inkjet printing inks and
colour toners for personal computers;
also in resist inks for the colour filters
in plasma/liquid crystal displays for
television and computers.
Japan Chemical Week, 3 Jul 2008, 49 (2472), 7-8
Indian exports $2 bn worth of
pigments, dyes & intermediates
The total value of output from Indias
chemical industry is currently
estimated at $65 bn. The total value
of output from the dyes, pigments and
intermediates sector is just under $4
bn, representing 6% of the total. India
already exports $2 bn/y worth of
certain premium-quality coloured dyes
and pigments, representing 7.5% of
total world trade. The trade
federations believe that India could be
exporting $3 bn/y worth of dyes,
pigments and intermediates by the
year 2010, representing about 11% of
forecast world trade.
Chemical Business (India), Apr 2008, 22 (4), 71-73
PLANTS
Brazil: Ferro glass & ceramic
colorants, frits & glazes
With effect from the end of June 2008,
Ferro Corp discontinued the
manufacture of tile frits and colorants
at its Americana complex in Brazil.
This meant the loss of 73 jobs, with
annual savings estimated at $2.0-2.5
M. Customer requirements for these
products will in future be catered for
by Ferros plants in Mexico and Spain.
The company will continue making
porcelain enamel frits, glazes and
glass colorants at Americana. It will
take a charge against earnings for 2Q
2008 amounting to $1.4 M, including
$0.9 M to cover employee severance
payments and $0.5 M for asset
impairment write-downs.
Press Release from: Ferro Corp, 1000 Lakeside
Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44114 7000, USA. Website:
http://www.ferro.com (20 Jun 2008)
Eastern Europe: Aditya Birla Nuvo
carbon black
Aditya Birla Nuvo intends to spend
$150 M to build a new carbon black
plant at an as yet undisclosed location
in Eastern Europe. The company
already has significant stakes in
carbon black ventures in Egypt and
Thailand, as well as wholly-owned
facilities in the Indian provinces of
Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
Plastics and Rubber Asia, Jun 2008, 23 (159 (Rubber
Journal Asia Supplement)), 2
France: Toyo Ink plastics masterbatch
Toyo Ink has opened its new plant at
Villiers St Paul for making plastics
masterbatches. Toyo Ink now has 11
such plants around the world, with a
combined capacity in excess of
60,000 tonnes/y. The new French
SEPTEMBER 2008 3
F O C U S O N P I G M E N T S