According to the latest market study released by Technavio (technavio.com), the global rigid plastic packaging market is set to reach U.S. $225.8 billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of close to 6% during the forecast period.

The report categorizes the global rigid plastic packaging market into three major product segments: bottles, containers and other rigid plastic packaging products.

The rigid plastic bottles segment occupied the largest share in the global rigid plastic packaging market in 2015 and is set to continue its lead during the forecast period. Rigid plastic bottles are used for juices, water, carbonated soft drinks, food products, cosmetics products, personal care products and pharmaceutical products. The market will show moderate growth during the forecast period because of the boom in the retail industry coupled with the rise in disposable income of consumers.

The growing population, increase in urbanization, increased disposable income and growing demand for beverages and household care products are boosting the market growth. “A certain portion of their demand also arises from the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry to package sensitive fluid medication. Most of these containers are made from PET though other materials like HDPE, PP and MDPE are also used. They can be molded into a variety of shapes and dimensions to pack anything ranging from cream to insecticides,” says Sharan Raj, lead analyst at Technavio for packaging.

The rigid plastic containers segment is expected to be the slowest growing segment in the market during the forecast period. Growing demand for convenient packaging such as microwavable and dual oven-able packaging containers is forcing vendors to provide advanced, premium and customized packaging solutions for their products. The demand for rigid plastic packaging is propelled by the expansion of retail distribution and improvement in polymer material products such as blow-molded bottles and containers, dispensing caps, thin-wall packaging and closures.

The other rigid plastic product segment includes containers such as cups, lids, tubs, clamshell containers, pots and cans. Though this segment occupied the smallest share of the global market, it is expected to grow at the fastest rate among all the segments of this market. Due to an increase in demand for convenience, portability, and portion control and smaller, single-serving products, the demand for tubs, cups and bowls is expected to increase.