Acetone Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the acetone market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global acetone market reached a value of nearly $5.13 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.3% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $5.13 billion in 2023 to $6.21 billion in 2028 at a rate of 3.9%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.4% from 2028 and reach $7.7 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the increasing demand for polycarbonate products, growth in the chemical industry, growth in the pharmaceuticals industry, increasing demand for consumer electronics and growth in the textile industry. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period include trade restrictions and economic uncertainties or downturns.

Going forward, the increasing demand for the cosmetic and personal care sector, increasing industrialization, growth of the automotive industry, growth in the paints and coatings sector and rising disposable income will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the acetone market in the future include supply chain disruptions.

The acetone market is segmented by grade into specialty grade acetone and technical grade acetone. The technical grade acetone market was the largest segment of the acetone market segmented by grade, accounting for 87.2% or $4.47 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the specialty grade acetone segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the acetone market segmented by grade, at a CAGR of 4.4% during 2023-2028.

The acetone market is segmented by application into bisphenol A, methyl methacrylate (MMA), solvents, methyl isobutyl ketone and other applications. The solvents market was the largest segment of the acetone market segmented by application, accounting for 37.1% or $1.9 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the methyl methacrylate (MMA)segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the acetone market segmented by application, at a CAGR of 4.7% during 2023-2028.

The acetone market is segmented by end-user into paints & coatings, electronics, cosmetics and personal care, pharmaceutical, automotive and other end-user. The paints & coatings market was the largest segment of the acetone market segmented by end-user, accounting for 34.6% or $1.77 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the cosmetics and personal care segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the acetone market segmented by end-user, at a CAGR of 4.9% during 2023-2028.

The acetone market is segmented by distribution channel into manufacturer to distributor and manufacturer to end-user. The manufacturer to distributor market was the largest segment of the acetone market segmented by distribution channel, accounting for 69.5% or $3.56 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the manufacturer to end-user segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the acetone market segmented by distribution channel, at a CAGR of 4.6% during 2023-2028.

Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the acetone market, accounting for 46.8% or $2.4 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by North America, Western Europe and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the acetone market will be Africa and the Middle East, where growth will be at CAGRs of 4.9% and 4.7% respectively. These will be followed by Asia-Pacific and South America, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 4.5% and 4.3% respectively.

The global acetone market is fairly concentrated, with large players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 39.86% of the total market in 2023. Ineos Group Limited was the largest competitor with an 8.72% share of the market, followed by Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp with 7.81%, PTT Global Chemical with 3.81%, Cepsa (Compañía Española de Petróleos, S.A.U.) with 3.79%, Sinopec with 3.54%, Borealis AG with 3.18%, Shell PLC with 2.98%, Mitsui Chemicals Inc with 2.39%, LG Chem Ltd with 1.93% and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation with 1.70%.

The top opportunities in the acetone market segmented by grade will arise in the technical grade acetone segment, which will gain $918.3 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the acetone market segmented by application will arise in the solvents segment, which will gain $350.9 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the acetone market segmented by end-user will arise in the paints & coatings segment, which will gain $326.2 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the acetone market segmented by distribution channel will arise in the manufacturer to distributor segment, which will gain $686.7 million of global annual sales by 2028. The acetone market size will gain the most in China at $359.6 million.

Market-trend-based strategies for the acetone market include increasing investments in new acetone production plants to enhance production capabilities, sustainability certification for renewable acetone use and innovations in plastic recycling yield circular phenol and acetone.

Player-adopted strategies in the acetone market include focus on enhancing portfolio by strategic acquisitions and focus on enhancing operational efficiency.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the acetone companies to focus on expansion of production capabilities, focus on sustainability certification for renewable acetone, focus on innovations in circular phenol and acetone, focus on specialty grade acetone segment, focus on manufacturer to end-user distribution channel segment for growth, expand in emerging markets, provide competitively priced offerings, participate in trade shows and events, continue to use B2B promotions, focus on methyl methacrylate (mma) segment and focus on cosmetics and personal care segment.