Chemical Plants Move To The U.S.

The natural gas boom in the U.S. due to fracking has created a new import: chemical plants. Methanex, the world's largest methanol producer, is spending $1.1 billion to disassemble two chemical plants in northern Chile, ship, and reassemble the plants in Louisiana. The U.S experienced a trade surplus of $800 million in chemicals during 2012, a number that is expected to grow to $46 billion by 2020. Overall, about one-half of the spending in new chemical plants in the U.S. is funded foreign companies.