Focus on wood coatings: Industrial wood coatings markets overview

Douglas Bohn, Orr & Boss Consulting Incorporated, gives a market overview on the industrial wood coatings market

The global industrial wood coatings market is an interesting market with good growth opportunities. The market is truly global in nature, with furniture and wood products manufactured around the world. Each region of the industrial wood coatings market has its own characteristics.

Market size

The estimated size of the market is 2.3bn litres and US$10.75bn.  As the graph below indicates, Asia is by far the largest region.  Total sales of industrial wood coatings in Asia are estimated to be US$5.9bn. The next biggest market is Europe and then North America. Much of the Asia market is produced for sale in North America, Europe, or elsewhere in the world.  So, the growth and size of the Asian market is linked to the global economic environment.

Since Asia is such a large part of the global industrial wood coatings business, we break it down further into six sub-regions.  The largest of these is Greater China, where the industrial wood coatings market is estimated to be US$4.9bn. The second largest is south east Asia, where the market is estimated to US$700M. Vietnam and Indonesia are especially important markets in south east Asia.

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Market growth

The key driver of the industrial wood coatings market is building and construction activity. As new construction is put in place, it drives demand for building products, flooring and cabinets, as well as new furniture that is often bought when we people move to a new location.  The market for industrial wood coatings will be slow this year due to slowing building and construction activity, which is a result of the rising interest rate environment. But we are expecting a pickup in the coming years. At Orr & Boss, we think that the interest rate increases that have slowed building and construction activity will stabilise or possibly decline in the next year and that will lead some stability and growth in the industrial wood coatings market. Asia should continue to lead the market due its expected faster economic growth. We do expect the Middle East and Africa to grow faster as well; especially the Middle East. Globally, we expect the market to grow at a 4.5% CAGR through to 2028.

Applications

The major applications for wood coatings include furniture, cabinet, wood flooring and other products. The furniture market is strong in Asia. Much of the furniture produced in Asia is exported to North America, Europe and elsewhere.  Furniture is also relatively strong in Europe, with some furniture manufacturers still present in Italy, Germany and Poland, for example.  Within North America, the cabinet market is the strongest.    Other products include an assortment of other wood products like trim, siding, paneling, windows, doors and others. The graph below shows the global breakdown of the market.

Conclusion

In summary, Orr & Boss expects the global wood coatings market to slow this year due to the rising global interest rates, but we expect growth to pickup again through 2028 as interest rates stabilise and possibly decline. Asia and the Middle East & Africa will be the fastest growing regions due to the relative fast-growing economies. China continues to be a centre of the industry but the south east Asia region also has a strong wood coatings market as well. Vietnam and Indonesia are important markets.

Orr & Boss Consulting Incorporated is a global consulting firm that covers the Coatings, Adhesives & Sealants, and Raw Material supplier industries.

www.orrandboss.com