Carbon black market seen topping $30 billion by 2030

The Business Research Company projects the global carbon black market will exceed $30 billion by 2030, led by Asia-Pacific and China and powered by tire manufacturing, specialty grades and electrification demand. The report also points to furnace black as the dominant segment and says the market will grow at an 8% CAGR through 2030.

Why it matters: - Carbon black is a core input for tires, industrial rubber, plastics, coatings and conductive materials. - The market’s growth is tied to auto production, replacement tire demand, electric vehicles and industrial manufacturing. - The report puts carbon black at nearly 0.4% of the broader chemicals industry by 2030.

What happened: - The Business Research Company released its Carbon Black Market Report 2026, covering market size, trends and global forecasts for 2026-2035. - The report says the carbon black market will surpass $30 billion in 2030. - The report estimates the market will grow at an 8% CAGR through 2030. - The report says Asia-Pacific will be the largest region in 2030, at $14 billion. - The report says China will be the largest country in 2030, at $7 billion. - The report says furnace black will be the largest type segment in 2030, at 79% of the market or $24 billion. - The report identifies tire, non-tire rubber, inks and coating, plastic and other applications as the main application segments.

The details: - Asia-Pacific is projected to grow from $9 billion in 2025 to $14 billion in 2030, a 9% CAGR. - China is projected to grow from $5 billion in 2025 to $7 billion in 2030, also a 9% CAGR. - The report links Asia-Pacific growth to tire manufacturing, EV and automotive component production, plastics, coatings, rubber demand, industrial manufacturing, construction and petrochemical capacity expansion across China, India, Japan and Southeast Asia. - The report links China’s growth to automotive manufacturing, aftermarket tire demand, aerospace and defense materials, high-performance plastics, specialty rubber products, industrial production, infrastructure investment and manufacturing technology improvements. - Furnace black is supported by reinforcement demand in tires, industrial rubber goods, inks, pigments, conductive uses, durable polymers and composite materials. - The report says the carbon black market will account for around 3% of the parent specialty chemicals market, which is projected to reach about $1,001 billion by 2030. - The report says carbon black will represent nearly 0.4% of the broader chemicals market, projected at $7,007 billion by 2030. - The report says the most significant growth opportunities are in furnace black, channel black, thermal black, acetylene black and other types. - Those segments are projected to add more than $10.8 billion in market value by 2030. - The report says furnace black will grow by $8 billion from 2025 to 2030. - The report says channel black and thermal black will each grow by $1 billion. - The report says acetylene black and other types will each grow by $0.4 billion.

Between the lines: - The forecast points to a market split between volume-driven tire and rubber demand and higher-margin specialty uses. - The strongest tailwinds come from electrification, where conductive carbon black is used in batteries, cables and electronic components. - The report’s emphasis on specialty grades suggests suppliers may be shifting toward performance materials rather than commodity supply alone. - The company says market attractiveness scoring, TAM analysis, company scoring matrices, Excel forecasting dashboards, hotspots infographics and updated graphics were added to the 2026 report.

What's next: - Tire capacity expansion, specialty grade adoption and EV-related conductive demand are expected to keep driving the market through 2030. - The report says expansion in batteries, supercapacitors, advanced electronics and renewable energy storage should create additional demand. - Suppliers targeting furnace black and specialty grades are positioned to capture the largest projected gains. - More information is available in the company's announcement and the sample request.