People
Matt McCauley
Global Co-Leader, Energy & Process Industries, Partner & Managing Director
Houston
The global chemical industry has faced a prolonged downturn since hitting its peak earlier in the decade. Initially appearing to be an abrupt cyclical correction, the trend is now showing characteristics of a slower-moving structural reset that fundamentally weakens investor confidence.
The trend is fueled by several factors, including overcapacity in key value chains; persistently soft demand in core end markets; heightened geopolitical instability (including the ongoing conflict and logistics disruptions in the Middle East); and structurally higher energy and core feedstock costs in regions such as Europe and Northeast Asia. As these forces converge, margins are compressed, and the sector’s historical resilience is increasingly undermined. This pressure changes how assets are utilized and how capital investments are rewarded.
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