What Is the Current State of the Plastic Products Industry?
The top 10 largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world are consistently driving growth for a high-performing plastic products industry. Just how big is the plastic industry? By 2027, the global plastics market size is expected to reach USD 754.3 billion and grow at a CAGR of 3.5% during the forecast period. The largest plastic manufacturers leading this growth are the Dow Chemical Company, LyondellBasell, and ExxonMobil. The top exporting countries of plastic items are China, Germany, and the USA.
This fact sheet is to assist business professionals, investors, and people in general that are interested in gaining insights into the global plastic products industry including:
- Discover who the top 10 largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world in 2020?
- Complete list of largest plastic manufacturers in the world?
- What are the plastic products industry statistics and trends to leverage in 2020?
- How big is the plastic industry?
- What are the top plastic item exporting countries in the world?
BizVibe is already helping the top plastic companies in the world connect. Connect and track the latest news and insights from these companies.
Plastic Products Industry Statistics
- Plastic market size worth $754.3 billion by 2027.
- Global sales for plastic items exports by country totaled US$79 billion in 2018.
- Year over year, the value of exported plastic items appreciated by 8.5% from 2017 to 2018.
- European countries sold the highest value worth of exported plastic articles via a 43.7% increase. Close behind was Asia at 41.5%, trailed by North American suppliers at 13.3%.
Top 10 Largest Plastic Manufacturing Companies in the World 2020
Who are the top 10 largest plastic manufacturers in the world? The following is a list of largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world ranked by taking revenue, assets, and brand value into account.
1. Dow Chemical Company
Who is the largest plastic manufacturer in the world? As of 2020, Dow ranks number 1 on our list of the top 10 plastic manufacturing companies in the world. Dow is a chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. Dow manufactures plastics, chemicals, and agricultural products, and operates in over 160 countries. Dow generated revenues of USD 60.278 billion in 2018 making it the leader in revenues among the top 10 largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world.
- Founded: 1897
- Dow Headquarters: Midland, Michigan, U.S
- Dow Total Asset Value: USD 77.378 billion
- Dow Revenue: USD 60.278 billion
- Dow Number of Employees: 54,000
Dow Chemical Company Products
- Chemicals
- Plastics
- Performance chemicals
- Catalysts
- Coatings
- Hydrocarbon exploration
2. LyondellBasell
2nd on BizVibe’s list of the largest plastic manufacturers in the world in 2020 is LyondellBasell, the global public multinational chemical company. The company currently has headquarters in Houston, Texas, and global operations in London, UK, and is the largest licensor of polyethylene and polypropylene technologies. It also produces ethylene, propylene, polyolefins, and oxyfuels. LyondellBasell generated revenues of USD 34.484 billion last year making it a leader in revenue and profits among the largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world.
- Founded: 2007
- LyondellBasell Headquarters: Houston, Texas & London, UK
- LyondellBasell Total Asset Value: USD 26.206 billion
- LyondellBasell Revenue: USD 34.484 billion
3. ExxonMobil
Coming in 3rd on the list of the largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world in 2020 is the US-based multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas, ExxonMobil. Outside of just the plastic products industry, ExxonMobil is one of the world’s largest companies by revenue. ExxonMobil Chemical is a petrochemical company that was created by merging Exxon’s and Mobil’s chemical industries. Its principal products include basic olefins and aromatics, ethylene glycol, polyethylene, and polypropylene along with specialty lines such as elastomers, plasticizers, solvents, process fluids, oxo alcohols, and adhesive resins. In 2018, ExxonMobil brought in revenues of USD 279.3 billion, most of it outside of the plastic products sector of course.
- Founded: 1999
- ExxonMobil Headquarters: Irving, Texas, U.S.
- ExxonMobil Total Asset Value: USD 346.2 billion
- ExxonMobil Revenue: USD 279.3 billion
- ExxonMobil Number of Employees: 71,000
ExxonMobil Products
- Crude oil
- Oil products
- Natural gas
- Petrochemicals
- Power generation
4. SABIC
SABIC is a Saudi plastic manufacturing company, that is active in petrochemicals, chemicals, industrial polymers, fertilizers, and metals industries. SABIC is the second-largest public company in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia. In 2013, SABIC was the world’s fourth-largest chemical producer in the world. The company was founded 44 years ago in 1976 and is currently headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. SABIC brought in revenues of USD 39.8 billion in 2017 makk9ing it one of the largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world as of 2020.
- Founded: 1976
- SABIC Headquarters: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- SABIC Revenue: USD 39.8 billion
- SABIC Number of Employees: 35,000
SABIC Products
- Chemicals and intermediates
- Industrial polymers
- Fertilizers
- Metals
5. INEOS
INEOS is a privately owned company based out of the UK and headquartered in London, UK. As a multinational chemical company, INEOS is organized into around 20 standalone business units. INEOS is involved in more than just the plastic products industry; INEOS provides products for many markets including fuels and Lubricants (23.3%), Packaging and Food (18.5%) and Construction (16.1%). In 2019, INEOS revenue was USD 85 billion
- Founded: 1998
- INEOS Headquarters: London, United Kingdom
- INEOS Revenue: USD 85 billion
- INEOS Number of Employees: 22,000
INEOS Products
- Chemical substances
- Petrochemicals
- plastics
6. BASF
BASF is a German chemical company and the second-largest chemical producer in the world with multiple subsidiaries and joint ventures in more than 80 countries and operates six integrated production sites and 390 other production sites in Europe, Asia, Australia, the Americas, and Africa. Founded in 1865 and headquartered currently in Ludwigshafen, Germany, BASF is the 6th largest plastic manufacturer in the world as of 2020. BASF’s revenues in 2019 were USD 63.8 billion — making the company one of the largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world.
- Founded: 1865
- BASF Headquarters: Ludwigshafen, Germany
- BASF Total Asset Value: USD 93.4 billion
- BASF Revenue: USD 63.8 billion
- BASF Number of Employees: 117,628
BASF Products
- Chemicals
- Plastics
- Performance chemicals
- Catalysts
- Coatings
- Crop technology
- Crude oil and natural gas exploration and production
7. ENI
ENI is an Italian multinational oil and gas company headquartered in Rome. ENI has operations in 79 countries and is currently the world’s 11th largest industrial company with a market capitalization of USD 90 billion. In terms of annual revenue, ENI brought in USD 82.6 billion in 2018.
- Founded: 1953
- ENI Headquarters: Rome, Italy
- ENI Total Asset Value: USD 2.4 billion
- ENI Revenue: USD 126.9 billion
- ENI Number of Employees: 30,950
ENI Products
- Petroleum
- Natural gas
- Petroleum products
- Energy
- Plastics
8. LG Chem
Often referred to as LG Chemical, LC Chem is the largest Korean chemical company and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. In 2017, LG Chem was ranked the 10th largest chemical company in the world by sales. LG Chem has eight factories in South Korea and a network of 29 business locations in 15 countries. The company’s revenues reached USD 20.4 billion last year and ranks 8th on this list of the largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world.
- Founded: 2005
- LG CHEM Headquarters: Yurakucho, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan
- LG CHEM Total Asset Value: USD 2.8 billion
- LG CHEM Revenue: USD 41.7 billion
- LG CHEM Number of Employees: 106,800
LG Chem Products
- Raw materials
- Chemicals
- IT and electronics materials
- Energy solutions
9. Chevron Phillips Chemical
Chevron Phillips Chemical is a petrochemical company jointly owned by Chevron Corporation and Phillips 66. Chevron Phillips is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas, a northern suburb of Houston, and is a major producer of ethylene, propylene, polyethylene, Alpha-olefins, Polyalphaolefins, aromatic compounds and a range of specialty chemicals. The company brought in revenues of USD 13.416 billion last year.
- Founded: 1998
- Chevron Phillips Headquarters: Charlotte, U.S
- Chevron Phillips Revenue: USD 91.24 billion
- Chevron Phillips Number of Employees: 204,489
Chevron Phillips Products
- Aromatics
- Drilling Specialties
- K-Resin® SBC
- Normal Alpha Olefins
- Olefins
- Polyalphaoelfins
- Polyethylene
- Specialty Chemicals
10. Lanxess
Lanxess is a German specialty chemicals company based in Cologne, Germany that was founded in 2004 via the spin-off of the chemicals division and parts of the polymers business from Bayer AG. Lanxess’ brought in revenues of USD 7.7 billion — making the company rank 10th on BizVibe’s list of the top 10 plastic manufacturing companies in the world.
- Founded: 2004
- Lanxess Headquarters: Cologne, Germany
- Lanxess Revenue: USD 7.7 billion
- Lanxess Number of Employees: 19,000
Lanxess Products
- Polymers
- Intermediates and Specialty Chemicals
This is BizVibe’s list of the top 10 largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world in 2020, going by a combination of revenue, assets and brand value. These companies are changing the way businesses are innovating in the plastic products industry.
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Top Plastic Item Exports by Country
Rank / Country |
Exports in USD billions |
| 1. China | $19.5 billion |
| 2. Germany | $9.9 billion |
| 3. United States | $7.2 billion |
| 4. Italy | $3.3 billion |
| 5. France | $3 billion |
| 6. Poland | $2.3 billion |
| 7. Netherlands | $2.2 billion |
| 8. Japan | $2.2 billion |
| 9. Czech Republic | $2 billion |
| 10. Mexico | $2 billion |
| 11. Taiwan | $1.8 billion |
| 12. Hong Kong | $1.7 billion |
| 13. South Korea | $1.6 billion |
| 14. United Kingdom | $1.6 billion |
| 15. Belgium | $1.5 billion |
Source: Trade Map
- China, Germany, and the USA lead the world in total plastic item exports by country. The following listed 15 countries shipped 78% of global plastic items exports in 2018 by value.
The Future of the Plastic Products Industry
The future of the plastic products industry looks promising as the top 10 largest plastic manufacturing companies in the world continue to grow their total assets and annual revenue. Expect the industry to keep growing and the key players to play a vital role in its path towards greater success in the future. Now is the time, to connect with these and other like-minded companies BizVibe to get started on a stronger B2B strategy online.
