In the mid of January 2026, the South Korean carbon black market continued to thrive because there was strong demand coming from the automotive sector, battery manufacturers and coatings manufacturers. The increase in consumption of specialty carbon black due to the production of high-performance tires and electric vehicle (EV) tires and the increase in the offtake of conductive-grade carbon black by battery manufacturers for use in electrodes has created high demand. Domestic production has kept supply tight and limited the ability of markets to obtain imported carbon black and has constrained the supply of spot. Sustainability initiatives also have increased in importance as recovered carbon black from pyrolysis is being combined with carbon black from other manufacturing processes in formulations for tires and for industrial rubber products. While the use of silica-containing tread compounds and lower construction activity may have limited growth opportunities for some market segments, the overall fundamentals of the carbon black industry has remained strong due to substantial demand from downstream users and low inventory levels.
