Catalysts
Asia: China
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced in its January 2012 “World Economic Outlook” that the global GDP growth rate was 3.8% in 2011. However, Asian-Pacific nations bucked this tren..
South America: Venezuela
Fig. 1 illustrates the annual gross domestic product (GDP) and inflation from 2006 to 2011 for Venezuela. High crude oil prices have helped domestic GDP growth, suggesting a healthy economy. ..
South America: Brazil
Brazil’s economic improvement was remarkable over the past decade, following many years of slow growth. On average, the Brazilian gross output of goods and services increased at an annual average..
Asia: India
The Indian economy has come a long way since the 1991 economic reforms. A decade and a half of economic reform and globalization is yielding returns that cut across all income groups. The domestic eco..
Asia: Japan
The Japanese economy showed steady recovery for 2003–2007. However, due to the global recession in late 2008, Japan’s GDP growth decreased to –1% in 2008 and to –5.5% in 2009. Due ..
Europe: United Kingdom
The United Kingdom (UK) is Europe’s fourth largest chemical economy, after Germany, France and Italy. It accounts for 8% of the European Union’s (EU’s) $900 billion overall chemical pro..
WR Grace acquires China catalysts firm Noblestar
WR Grace officially acquired Noblestar Catalysts, a Qingdao, China-based manufacturer of FCC catalysts, catalyst intermediates and related refining industry products. Grace said it expects to make additional investments at the site for environmental, safety and manufacturing upgrades.
BASF to build emissions catalysts plant in Poland
Construction of the new 40,000 square meter facility – BASF’s largest in Europe – will begin before the end of 2012. The plant will start production in the first quarter of 2014. Additional expansion will follow, raising the total investment volume for the project to approximately €150 million.
HP Viewpoint: Age of turbulence: Charting the refining course toward a profitable future
High-performing enterprises draw on external expertise during all project phases, from scouting and front-end engineering and development through to operations.
HP Impact: Chemical industry execs look to the future
Chemical industry executives plan to soon use the significant cash on their balance sheets to pursue strategic acquisitions and new product developments to spur company growth, according to a survey r..

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