African paint industry report released by IRL

IRL is pleased to announce the launch of the latest edition of its regional title ‘A Profile of the African Paint Industry’. This updated report provides market data for 2013 and forecasts for 2018 and gives an overview of the paint industry trends across 20 countries in the region.

The total market for paints and coatings in the African continent was more than 1.4Mt in 2013. This could reach a total of 1.7Mt by 2018 provided an annual growth rate of 4% is attained.

The architectural and decorative coatings for consumer and professional users correspond to 83.4% of the total demand for paints. This is also one of the fastest expanding segments due to the growing amount of construction activity. With the emergence of a middle class and the improving purchasing power of consumers, the quality of paints is also evolving. In addition, anti-bacterial decorative paints are entering the market and have been used on the interior walls of public buildings, such as schools and hospitals.

The use of industrial coatings remains limited. Industrial wood coatings, together with general industrial coatings, are the main industrial coatings employed.

The higher performing protective, marine and automotive coatings are scarcely used due to the small-scale oil, marine and vehicle production industries in the region. Much interest centred on powder coatings due to their higher levels of protection.

On a country-by-country basis, South Africa stands out as the largest paint consumer in the region, closely followed by Egypt.