• £0.9bn

    GVA
  • £1.4bn

    Exports
  • 6,435

    Employment
  • 345

    Businesses

Top three chemical subsectors in Wales

By business number:

  1. Manufacture of perfumes and toilet preparation
  2. Manufacture of paints, varnishes and similar coatings, mastics and sealants
  3. Manufacture of plastics in primary forms

By employment:

  1. Manufacture of glues
  2. Manufacture of paints, varnishes and similar coatings, mastics and sealants
  3. Manufacture of other organic basic chemicals
  4. Manufacture of plastics in primary forms

GVA

This region is responsible for 2.8% of all gross value added by the national chemical industry.

Within West Midlands the chemical industry is responsible for 0.7% of gross value added from all industries and 4.2% of all manufacturing production.

Exports

This region’s export make up 2.4% of all chemical exports. Chemicals make up 4.1% of all exports from the region and are exported in similar quantities to EU and non-EU countries (57-43). 23% of all chemicals exported from the West Midlands are classified as chemical materials and products not elsewhere specified.

Employment

4.7 % of all chemical and pharmaceutical employment is in West Midlands, with 1000 people working in the manufacturing of glues, 900 in manufacture of paints, varnishes and similar coatings, mastics and sealants, 700 in manufacturing of other organic basic chemicals, and 700 in manufacturing of plastics in primary forms.

Our industry makes up 2.1% of all manufacturing employment in the region.

The biggest manufacturing employers are manufacture of fabricated metal products, manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers, and manufacture of food and drinks.