Chemical Industry Weekly News Round-Up, July 16

This week on CW:


_{Photo courtesy eyesplash Mikul's flickr photostream, via creative
commons license.}

A gold medal for the chemical business? Dow is going to sponsor the Olympics through 2020.

Semicon West happened this week in San Francisco. Recovery in semiconductors is well underway, and as demand for new materials accelerates, innovation will be crucial, attendees say.

Korean Honam Petrochemical is acquiring Malaysia's Titan Chemicals in a $1.26 billion deal.

The U.K. government is not planning to pass new rules for nanomaterials, but existing regulations are likely to be updated to cover the budding industry.

PPG's second-quarter earnings rose 86% from last year, beating analyst estimates at $1.64/share. Strong volumes drove the increase.

Around the Web:

Electronics company Sharp expects amorphous silicon to play a major role in the solar market, Greentech Media reports.

FiveThirtyEight takes a look at double-dip recession fears. Also, a fund manager makes the (rather scary) case that another downturn is likely.

Industry groups, including ACC, are taking aim at the "utility-only" climate plan currently being discussed in the U.S. Senate, the Hill reports. Groups say the bill will raise electricity costs – which sounds logical, but isn't that kind of the point? Meanwhile, November's midterm elections may mean that climate legislation is dead, anyway, in Blooomberg.