Australia Plastics Industry

Current Demand: Total demand in Australia for plastics and articles of plastics is estimated at US$6.2 billion. Imports satisfy 70 percent of the Australian market. The majority of companies in the plastics industry are wholesale distributors that service key channels.  There are a number of Australian companies with extrusion blow molding and injection molding capabilities.  There is a market for machinery and ancillary equipment that supports this subsector. More than 1.5 million tons of plastic is consumed annually with less than 20 percent recycled.  Emerging opportunities exist for plastics recycling technologies and solutions.
 
Market Entry: It is rare for overseas suppliers to sell directly to Australian end-users.  In some cases U.S. job shops have produced plastic parts and components for Australian customers, but these customers have usually been local subsidiaries of multinational operations.  The most common method of market entry is to appoint a local Australian stocking distributor.  Sales representatives or agents are virtually non-existent in Australia.  Distributors interested in a product will often request national exclusivity.  In some cases Australian distributors will have networks that allow them to also market to New Zealand.

A small number of well-established associations servicing various aspects of the plastics industry exist.  These associations can offer one way for U.S. companies to locate potential representatives and distributors.  Australia does not have any trade shows designed exclusively for the plastics industry.  Depending on the applications offered by plastic-based solutions, suppliers and distributors will often exhibit in other industry specific trade shows.