water treatment chemicals manufacturers today are confronted with several key challenges, such as intense market competition, fluctuating raw material prices, and strict regulatory requirements. The details are as follows:
- Fierce Market Competition
    - Price Wars: The water treatment chemical industry has a low concentration ratio. For example, in China, the CR5 is less than 20%. Leading water treatment chemicals manufacturers often expand production to seize market share, resulting in price wars. In 2024, the product unit price of some Chinese water treatment chemicals manufacturers decreased by about 8% year-on-year, which squeezed profit margins.
    - Shrinking Demand: The demand for water treatment chemicals is affected by the macro-economy. Downstream industries such as chemical engineering and steel have reduced their procurement of water treatment chemicals. In 2024, the water intake per ton of steel in the domestic steel industry decreased by 10%, directly affecting the demand for corrosion inhibitors and scale inhibitors.
    - International Trade Barriers: Geopolitics and trade barriers also pose challenges to international market expansion. For instance, some Chinese water treatment chemicals manufacturers have faced anti-dumping investigations in the Indian market, and Southeast Asian customers have turned to local suppliers.
- Fluctuating Raw Material Prices
    - Cost Pressure: The prices of raw materials for water treatment chemicals, such as yellow phosphorus and ethylene oxide derivatives, are volatile. In 2025, the cost of ethylene oxide derivatives increased by 18% year-on-year in the second quarter, increasing the production costs of enterprises and putting pressure on profits.
- Stringent Regulatory Requirements
    - Emission Standards: With the improvement of environmental protection awareness, countries have continuously strengthened the regulation of water treatment chemicals. The emission requirements for water treatment chemicals are becoming stricter, and the government has raised the limit standards for pollutant emissions, forcing enterprises to strengthen technological innovation and improve the environmental protection level of production processes.
    - Product Safety: There are also higher requirements for the environmental friendliness and safety of water treatment chemicals. Enterprises need to ensure that their products meet relevant standards, which requires continuous investment in research and development and strict quality control.
- Technological Innovation Pressure
    - Meeting New Demands: With the development of the industry, customers have higher and higher requirements for water treatment effects and environmental friendliness. water treatment chemicals manufacturers need to continuously innovate to develop more efficient, environmentally friendly, and high-performance products to meet market demands.
    - Overcoming Technical Barriers: Existing water treatment chemical technologies have their own advantages and disadvantages. For example, chemical methods may produce secondary pollution and have high costs, while biological methods have a long treatment cycle and are affected by environmental conditions. Enterprises need to overcome these technical barriers to improve the overall performance of products.
- Environmental and Social Responsibility Pressures
    - Environmental Impact Concerns: The use of water treatment chemicals may have an impact on ecosystems and aquatic life, which has attracted widespread attention. Manufacturers need to take measures to reduce the potential environmental impact of their products and demonstrate their environmental friendliness.
    - Sustainable Development Requirements: Stakeholders such as the public and investors are paying more and more attention to the sustainable development of enterprises. water treatment chemicals manufacturers need to strengthen supply chain management, promote sustainable practices, and meet the expectations of stakeholders in terms of environmental and social responsibility.