About The Authors

March 2023 - Chemicals

Latest CBA survey reveals improved outlook, although 46% of members report escalating shipping costs: The latest Chemical Business Association (CBA) trends survey has revealed that while supply chain constraints still remain a concern, there appears to be a brighter outlook, with current sales, order books and margins showing some improvements.

The CBA trends survey has been carried out quarterly, since 2003, with the latest survey polling 32 members.

The research found that while 46% of respondents reported 'rapidly escalating' shipping costs, this was down on last quarter when 62% said the same. Similarly, 11% reported a shortage of shipping containers, although this too was down from 36% in the previous survey.

When asked about haulage and capacity, 30% of businesses polled said they had faced issues in both the UK and the EU in the last few months, with almost half saying they believe they are still facing disruption due to the conflict in Ukraine.

The survey also asked respondents about the health of their order books as well as company sales, margins and staffing. Order books saw a substantial increase, from a balance of +15% reported in September 2022 to +34% in the latest survey. Sales volumes also showed improvement, increasing from +18% to 31% with a forecast of +28% for January to March. Looking at sales margins, slight improvements were also to be found, up from +12% in September 2022 to +22%in the latest survey, and with a slim recovery forecast for the next quarter (+13%).

When it came to staffing and training, there was also positive news up from +38% in the third quarter of 2022 to +47%. Investment in training was also indicated in the survey with training levels projected to reach +42% in the next three months compared to current training levels of +28%.

Tim Doggett, Chief Executive of the CBA said: “The survey does appear to indicate the outlook is improving, albeit there is hesitancy due to macro-economic factors such as the Ukraine war.”

“The chemical supply chain industry has always been resilient and although many of our members are still facing serious supply chain constraints, the impact of these disruptions has lessened in recent months.”

Other Chemicals Research Findings

Other Latest Market Research Insights