The business of chemistry (a.k.a. the chemical industry) is one of the oldest U.S. industries. It is a dynamic, forward-looking high-tech industry, a keystone of our economy and a leader in protecting the environment. Although the public does not always appreciate the many benefits arising from chemistry, its products greatly enhance our quality of life. Included are more than 70,000 products that enable rising U.S. productivity and living standards. Synthetic fibers and permanent-press clothing, life-saying medicines, health improvement products, more protective packaging materials, longer lasting paints, stronger adhesives, more durable and safer tires, lightweight automobile parts, and stronger composite materials in aircraft and spacecraft are only a few of the thousands of the innovative products of the business of chemistry. It is also an enabling and transforming business. U.S. companies engaged in the business of chemistry have remained internationally competitive, constantly creating new processes and products to solve performance, safety and efficiency problems in a number of industries and arenas.
The U.S. chemical industry is the world's largest, accounting for 27 percent of the total world chemical production. Moreover, in spite of wars and depression, the United States has maintained this number-one position since the 1910s. The chemical industry is the largest exporting sector in the United States, with exports totaling $68 billion in 1998. Balanced against imports of $55 billion, this provided a trade surplus of over $13 billion, continuing a more than seventy-year uninterrupted history of trade surpluses.
Defining the Business
The business of chemistry is not easily captured by either the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system nor the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS). The definitional foundations of both are based on the concept of related production activities. In contrast, the business of chemistry is largely market driven (or focused). Participants in the industry have never viewed themselves along the lines of economic nomenclature but rather within four main segments - basic chemicals, specialty chemicals, life sciences, and consumer products - each with its own characteristics, growth dynamics, markets, developments and issues. The boundaries between each are not clearly defined and some degree of overlapping exists. Table 1 describes key characteristics or parameters.
