Polymer capacity continues to rise / PE accounts for most regional output / Saudi Arabia is largest production base / Conversion sector focused on packaging and construction

Total polymer demand to reach 12.5m t in 2013 / Thermoplastics consumption growing 10% annually since 2007 / Fragmented plastics processing industry / AMI study

Optimism grows for year ahead as productivity improves / Gains in turnover and profitability expected / Reject euro replacing sterling / BPF survey

Diverts focus away from export to domestic markets / Shift in consumer behaviour boosts demand growth / Small companies to disappear / Industry consolidation gathers pace

Plastics industry likely to reach an all-time high in revenues by 2015 / Demand potential to double / Polymer demand reaching 40m t by 2021

Thermoplastics consumption takes a deep cut in 2012 / PVC hardest hit / E&E industry struggles to combat poor domestic demand / Plastics processing segment one of the few bright spots in the country's industrial sector

The Islamic Republic catching up as supplier of HDPE to Turkey and China / Global sanctions proving to have little impact

UK aims to double plastics recycling by 2017 / Impact only comes with more investment

Swiss plastics industry sees sales fall to CHF 15 bn last year / Pressure from euro crisis and strong Swiss franc / Processed volume amounts to 812,000 t / Productivity declines / Packaging industry also weak / Recovery expected during 2013

Growing number of international visitors and exhibitors in Guangzhou / Focus on sustainability and production efficiency

Engineering polymer consumption on the rise / ASEAN countries increasingly catering to regional customers / Malaysia for medical devices, Singapore for electronics

Plastics and rubber products output falls 2.6% in 2012 / Negative business trend continues into 2013 / World's largest per capita plastics producer / Federplast survey

Plastics demand declines by 9% year-on-year / Consumption down to 1997 levels / Plastics packaging production falls to 3.3m t / Exports of plastic waste have almost dried up

Optimism for 2013 falls as economic woes continue to exert pressure / Exports affected by euro crisis / Former BPF president Brian Mann set to retire

Visitor numbers at Plast Eurasia 2012 rise 23% year-on-year / Foreign visitor numbers up 41% over 2011 / Exhibitor numbers increase by 10% / Next fair held in December 2013