The demand for wood plastic composites (WPC) is increasing despite the present economic crisis. Over 1.5 million tons of WPC are produced worldwide, especially in North America (about 1 million tons), China (200,000 tons) and Japan (100,000 tons). Germany is the European leader with more than 70,000 tons and is, in addition, the leader in machine engineering. In Germany the main areas for the application of WPC are in the automotive industry for car interiors and also in decking. Decking are floor coverings, used mainly in outdoor areas, such as terraces and public places. These decking are increasingly becoming an alternative to tropical timber, and sales volume shows a yearly double digit growth. Wood plastic composite (WPC) market is expected to grow at an average rate of over 15% from 2009 through 2014 in Europe. Polymer industry in Europe faced challenging times in 2008 and 2009, when all polymer markets had negative growth. There was one exception - Wood plastic composite (WPC) which showed a modest growth in 2009 with demand pegged at about 100,000 tons. European WPC developments are focused on hollow WPC profile or foamed profiles instead of solid profile to overall reduce weight of profile products. European WPC market is predominantly based on PVC while North American WPC market is essentially based on polyolefins. Japanese WPC market is also predominantly based on polyolefins on account of environmental issues. The most popular type of compound used is 50/50 wood flour/PVC. The application of WPC in China is even more extensive – including products such as windows, doors, thermal insulating systems, park benches, garden sheds and sun screens for tower buildings, all made from WPC. Raw materials are wood flour as well as other cellulosic agricultural byproducts. The growth in China is at a level of 30% pa. Chinese WPC production is predicted to increase by up to 5 million tpa between now and 2015. (Author: Michael Carus, MD Nova-Institut GmbH)