On-purpose propylene technologies have began helping in balancing the demand and supply of propylene feedstock for the polypropylene industry. Propylene is one of the most important starting products in the petrochemical industry. The new study from Ceresana Research forecasts a dynamic development of the global demand for propylene, namely an increase of more than 20 million tons by 2017. “Sales of propylene reached their peak value of over US$90 bln in 2008. This level will be surpassed as soon as in 2012. An important factor, which will impact the global propylene market, is the massive capacity expansions for propylene and downstream products in the Middle East and China. Middle East countries exhibit the largest increases in propylene production and demand. Supply and demand in these countries are expected to double by 2014. However, the Asia-Pacific region will continue to dominate the market and generate more than 45% of all demand. China is rising to become the greatest propylene consumer worldwide and will most likely edge out the U.S. to take over second place in 2011. The most important buyers of propylene include manufacturers of polypropylene who account for nearly two thirds of all demand. Polypropylene is one of the best-selling plastics, second only to polyethylene. The largest consumer is the automobile industry. Polypropylene has a very wide range of applications and is, for example, also needed for the manufacturing of packaging films, bottle caps, fiber ropes as well as for bicycle helmets and nappies. The global PP market will be driven by economic development in up-and-coming markets. PP capacity of nearly 62 mln tons across the world is expected to increase by more than 23.5 mln tons by 2019 with the Asia-Pacific region accounting nearly 57% of the new facilities to be constructed. The present key customers for PP are flexible and rigid packaging producers, who account for an aggregated demand of 50%, while fibres made of PP and consumer goods accounted for a 12% each. The second-largest propylene market consists of producers of acrylonitrile, followed by propylene oxide. The production of cumene accounts for about 5.5% of the global demand for propylene. Acrylonitrile is mainly used to produce acrylic fibers, which are processed into textiles. The derivatives of propylene oxide are needed as raw materials for the manufacturing of products like polyurethane, lacquers and adhesives, polyester resins, cooling agents, antifreeze and solvents. Cumene is mainly used to manufacture phenol and acetone, and is therefore also a pre-product for bisphenol A, phenol resins, caprolactam and methyl methacrylate.