Episode 1330: Think Tank: Focus on markets, customers to survive trade war chaos

04/16/25 • 31 min

Chemical companies need a razor-sharp focus on identifying and nurturing markets and customers as the trade war pulls apart decades of established ways of doing business.

Cheap material being offered to Europe from Asian countries outside China

We are witnessing the breakup of the post-World War 2 Western Alliance

CEOs now have 90-day window of opportunity for scenario planning

Uncertainty about tariffs makes it difficult to plan

Focus on locating markets and customers amid the chaos

Major economies threatened with recession

Asset bubbles may be deflating

Chemical companies need a razor-sharp focus on identifying and nurturing markets and customers as the trade war pulls apart decades of established ways of doing business.

Cheap material being offered to Europe from Asian countries outside China

We are witnessing the breakup of the post-World War 2 Western Alliance

CEOs now have 90-day window of opportunity for scenario planning

Uncertainty about tariffs makes it difficult to plan

Focus on locating markets and customers amid the chaos

Major economies threatened with recession

Asset bubbles may be deflating

Previous Episode

Episode 1329: Think Tank: Nigel Davis reflects on 45 years in chemicals journalism, future trends

On the eve of his retirement, ICIS Think Tank podcast stalwart Nigel Davis and colleagues pick out key chemical industry turning points and point to the future.

Energy transition will have massive impact on chemicals

Tariffs could drive era of deglobalization

Chemicals journalism helps bring clarity to markets

Editorial content and analytics explain what is happening and why

Get past the press release and uncover the truth

Trusted sources of information are more important in an age of fake news

Listening, thinking, analysing are key journalistic skills

Key turning point when China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001