Five facts about the Japanese coatings market
Japan is one of the largest coatings markets in Asia and one of the most mature – good reason to have a closer look at it. We have put together five interesting facts.
Japan is a first-world country with mostly very mature industries. It is well known for its big car manufacturers but also for its shipbuilding and tech companies. Many Western countries have adapted Japanese manufacturing philosophies as Japan is known to be very efficient. All these strong industries have a large demand for coatings, creating a big coatings market.
Market size
The Japanese coatings market is worth about 5.2 billion EUR which ranks in number two in Asia. Only China has a market with a higher value. In terms of volume Japan ranks third with an annual volume of 1,674 million tonnes, following China and India.
Per capita paint and coating consumption
The consumption per capita in Japan is at 14,7 kg of coatings per annum. For a fully industrialised country this is a relatively low value. For example, Germany is consuming 21 kg of coatings per capita. On the other side of the spectrum you can find countries such as India where only 4 kg are used per capita annually.
Most important coatings sectors in Japan
As in many other countries, the buildings market is the most important consumer of paints and coatings. The graphic also shows, that Japan has a very strong automotive industry which is the second largest user of coatings in the country.
Japanese coatings manufacturers
The number of companies that are manufacturing paints is relatively small. Approximately 200 companies are currently active in Japan.
Japan is an export country
Japan is known for its strong export-driven economy. Of course, this is also true for the coatings industry. The country is exporting twice the volume of coatings than it is importing. Since the country is exporting mostly high-class coatings and only importing cheaper low-quality products, the differences in values are even more profound.
