Demand for gypsum products in North America is projected to increase 2.7 percent annually through 2013 to 47.7 million metric tons, valued at $5.3 billion. Gypsum board is the largest gypsum product segment by a wide margin, accounting for about 70 percent of demand. Demand for gypsum board is projected to rise 3.2 percent annually through 2013. Gains in demand for gypsum products will derive primarily from the recovery of the U.S. new housing sector, a leading consumer of gypsum. That's according to a new study by industry research firm The Freedonia Group.
In the United States, demand for gypsum and gypsum products declined sharply in 2007 and 2008 as new housing construction collapsed in the wake of upheaval in the banking and credit industries and with the onset of a general economic recession. Going forward, the recovery of the U.S. new housing sector from its depressed 2008 levels will lead the industry back to positive growth.
Synthetic gypsum, which accounted for 24 percent of crude gypsum supply in 2008, will continue to gradually increase its share of crude gypsum production. Synthetic gypsum, which is widely available in the United States and Canada, is produced primarily as a byproduct of the flue gas desulfurization process for reducing emissions at coal-fired power plants.
Gypsum in North America (published 09/2009, 252 pages) is available for $4,700 from
www.freedoniagroup.com.
