Market Overview

Oleyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol which is usually found in fish oil and beef fat. It is unsaturated and non-ionic in nature which shares a wide scope in various application as well as end-user industries. Oleyl alcohol is used in an extensive range of applications such as lotions, thickener in skin creams, emulsifiers, surfactants, hair coatings, hair conditioners, and plasticizers for softening fabrics.

The global market for oleyl alcohol has been witnessing significant growth on account of increasing demand from its application industries such as personal care. It is used in a variety of applications such as surfactants, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

One of the major opportunities for the surfactant industry is bio-based surfactants where rising awareness among consumers towards eco-friendly products has noticeably contributed towards the growing demand for oleyl alcohol in surfactants.

Surfactants also share a broad application scope as foaming agents, emulsifiers, detergents, and wetting agents. Conditioning and detergency are some of the vital properties of surfactants due to which they share a wide application scope.

Major applications of oleyl alcohol-based surfactants include personal care, textile, pharmaceutical, soap and detergent among others. Key manufacturers have entered into several collaborations and agreements with other companies for the marketing of new products as well as garnering a larger share in the market.

Other applications of oleyl alcohol include plasticizer for use in fabrics. The market for oleyl alcohol in plasticizers has been witnessing noticeable growth due to changing lifestyles and emerging global economies in Asia Pacific and Latin America. Additionally, growing environmental awareness and rising legal provisions have been serving as a catalyst for the plasticizers market with developments in various emerging economies such as Brazil, Russia, China and India.

Matured regions such as Europe and North America accounted for the highest demand for oleyl alcohol due to the presence of vast hair care and skin care industries in these regions resulting in significant demand for the chemical. Moreover, emerging economies in Asia Pacific such as Japan, China and India are anticipated to witness the fastest growth rate over the forecast period on account of growing hair care, skin care and pharmaceutical industries in the region.

Various factors such as rising awareness regarding healthy hair and skin among consumers as well as changing lifestyles is expected to boost the demand for personal care products which in turn is anticipated to contribute towards the demand for oleyl alcohol.

Increasing demand for personal care products such as hair care and skin care on account of rising awareness for hair and skin is expected to be another major factor driving the demand for oleyl alcohol. Moreover, growing demand for pharmaceuticals is also expected to contribute towards the growing demand for oleyl alcohol in the production of various drugs and ointments within the forecast period. In addition, increasing consumption of oleyl alcohol in surfactants due to their low cost and ease of availability has also contributed significantly towards the growth of the market.

However, fluctuating prices of key feedstock materials has been major concern for the manufacturers and is expected to limit the growth of the market. Focus on commercializing and developing cost-effective bio-based surfactants using oleyl alcohol is anticipated to provide new opportunities for the growth of the market.