Adhesive tape is a continuous flexible strip of paper or cloth, a plastic film or metal foil coated with a glutinous adhesive on one or both sides. These tapes are provided in the form of sheets or rolls of different sizes and are generally known as tapes, sticky tapes, pressure-sensitive tapes, and self-sticking tapes. The adhesive tapes are largely used for packing and binding products associated with the e-commerce, healthcare, and food beverage industries.

Moreover, these tapes have become an important part of the automotive industry. This sector uses tapes with adhesive properties primarily in the form of double-sided tapes and protection tapes.

Furthermore, restrictions laid down by governments on the use of toxic chemicals for the production of adhesive solutions has led to the adoption of eco-friendly products such as water-activated tapes that are biodegradable in nature. These environment-friendly tapes are produced by using biodegradable polymers that are obtained through the polymerization of bio-based raw materials. The development of recyclable tapes is creating lucrative opportunities for companies such as 3M Company, LINTEC Corporation, Intertape Polymer Group Inc., Scapa Group plc, Nitto Denko Corporation, and tesa SE.

These companies are involved in the production of commodity and specialty adhesive tapes. In coming years, the adoption of specialty tapes will rise, on account of ongoing developments in the automobile sector. The surge in demand can be owed to the increasing preference for specialty tapes over traditional methods used for fastening and fixing of auto parts. Additionally, the soaring demand for medical tapes in the healthcare and hygiene sector will boost the demand for specialty tapes in foreseeable future.

According to PS Intelligence, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region accounted for the highest consumption of adhesive tapes. Further, the APAC adhesive tapes market is projected to witness rapid growth during the forecast period, due to the increasing utilization of these adhesive solutions in the healthcare, electrical and electronics, and automotive industries, primarily in India and China. Besides, the easy availability of cheap labor and low-cost raw materials has stimulated the manufacturing of tapes with adhesion properties. This has resulted in high volume production of low-priced tapes in the region.

Additionally, the presence of organizations such as the Japanese Adhesive Tape Manufacturers Association (JATMA) and the China Adhesives and Tape Industry Association (CATIA) are supporting the development of adhesive solutions in the APAC region. Besides, the existence of numerous key players like LINTEC Corporation and Nitto Denko Corporation in the region and their efforts in commercialization and research and development (RD) of adhesive tapes will boost the consumption of these products in coming years.

Thus, the availability of new and improved tapes, such as water-soluble adhesive tapes, has increased their applications in several sectors like automobile, food, and packaging.