Japan Chemical Licensing Market - Forecasts from 2024 to 2029

The Japanese chemical licensing market will reach US$1.49 billion in 2029 at a CAGR of 3.71% from US$1.24 billion in 2024.

Japanese chemical licensing market showing significant growth owing to the demand from the core sectors like oil and gas, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals. With the aging population in Japan, the domestic demand for pharmaceuticals will continue to rise, giving rise to the opportunity to input chemicals for production. According to the World Economic Forum, Japan has an estimated 36.23 million, or 10% of the population, now aged 80 or older. 

Japan's developed chemical market further entices investors to collaborate with its leading players. The country has a robust logistics and supply chain capability for easy transportation. Additionally, it has robust trade regulations and government support.

Furthermore, one of the leading imports of the country is chemicals. The United States exported $80.3 billion, or 21.3% of the total exports to the country of chemicals, plastics, rubber, and leather goods. Another major sector where chemical licensing is used is oil, minerals, lime, and cement, which make up 17.6% of the total exports by the US to Japan.

Japan Chemical Licensing Market drivers:

Innovation in production methods is anticipated to fuel the market.

Companies worldwide, including in Japan, are actively collaborating with artificial intelligence startups for new drug development. The introduction of AI drug discovery techniques in Japan will enable companies to develop and design pharmaceutical molecules in significantly less time.

Utilization of AI is not only limited to pharmaceuticals but also material chemicals, where the application of AI developments is necessary to fast forward to generate the materials likely to be used in various sectors. The chemicals used for digital devices, lead, nickel, hexavalent chromium, etc. further drive the market for chemical licensing in Japan.

Demand for sustainability and environmental concerns might positively impact the market.

The companies are looking for sustainable technologies and materials as the end user industry for reduced wastage, resource efficiency, and cleaner production processes. These goals are important for keeping the ESG (environmental, social, and governance) targets of the company. In October 2023, Axens, IFPEN, and JEPLAN announced the operation of Rewind® PET semi-industrial unit for recycling PET. This will put the future innovative PET recycling process for industrial users.

Furthermore, the climate change goals and sustainability targets are pushing companies for products and processes conducive to the environment. Chemical licensing offers a faster and more cost-effective way to chemical production processes. 

Japan Chemical Licensing Market Segmentation Analysis

The Japanese chemical licensing market is segmented by application into oil and gas, petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, and others.

Japanese chemical licensing market by application is segmented into oil and gas, petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, and others. With oil remaining the significant energy source in Japan, accounting for 40% of the country’s total energy supply, the usage of chemical licensing in the oil and gas sector would be significant. The pharmaceutical sector shows a steady rise as the demand for new and novel drugs will rise with the growing aging population and increasing chronic diseases.

Japan Chemical Licensing Market - Geographical Outlook

Tokyo and Osaka regions are anticipated to hold a significant share of the Japanese chemical licensing market.

The regions of Osaka and Tokyo are flourishing with various industrial and manufacturing companies such as Osaka Gas Chemicals, Daiwa Chemical Industries Co., Ltd., Arakawa Chemical Industries, Ltd, and Koushi Chemical Industry, among others in Osaka. Albion Co., Ltd., Asahi Kasei, Tokyo Chemical Industry, Kumiai Chemical Industry, and others in Tokyo. These factories give robust growth to the sector and are economically viable.

Japan Chemical Licensing Market Industry Updates:

• December 2023- BioCheetah Pte. Ltd. and Nippon Kayaku Co., Ltd. announced an exclusive licensing and commercialization agreement to develop a novel urinary biomarkers-based bladder cancer diagnostic assay kit, VECanDx™ ELISA in Japan as a pharmaceuticals manufacturing.
• January 2023- Mitsubishi Chemical Group and Mitsui Chemicals, Inc., in partnership, have launched a joint study into standardizing and optimizing chemical logistics. This will help to optimize chemical transportation and cutting of costs. They are collaborating to use the transportation networks, coastal trading vessels, logistics projects, etc. The aim is to standardize to develop an information base for chemical logistics.

Japan Chemical Licensing Market Players and Products:

• JNC Corporation- The company licenses sophisticated technologies for the PVC Process, Vinyl Chloride Monomer(VCM) Removal Process, and Gas Phase PP Process. They licensed the suspension PVC process to 32 companies, and the total annual capacity of licensed plants has reached 12.8 million metric tons. They also licensed the VCM removal process from aqueous PVC slurry to companies more than 159. They have a variety of PVC Grades, such as high K-value, low Kvalue, matted and copolymer, etc.
• Mitsui Chemicals- The company has several proprietary technologies available for licensing. For example, HDPE (CX Process) is used to produce high-quality HMW-HDPE for ultra-thin film, small & large blow molding, and gas/water pipes. PP has a high yield, high stereo-specificity catalyst (HY-HS Catalyst) for producing polypropylene homopolymer and random/impact copolymers. Further, for PS, Acetone Recycle, Acrylamide, etc. The company provides a complete support package from training to marketing to ensure a smooth process. 

The Japan’s Chemical Licensing Market is segmented and analyzed as below:

By Type

• Inorganic Chemicals
• Organic Chemicals

By Application

• Oil and Gas
• Petrochemicals
• Pharmaceuticals
• Others

By Province

• Tokyo
• Hiroshima
• Osaka
• Kyoto
• Others