By Anil Taneja
1. The serious disruptions in logistics and rising energy prices have led to a situation the much higher transport costs mean specifiers are giving increasing priority to locally quarried materials. This is a trend all over the world.
2. High shipping costs also mean low priced stone is in much lower demand. In international trade. International trade is becoming less and less in low priced stones where shipping costs are often greater than the cost of the processed stone.
3. Specifying premium materials imported from distant countries currently makes sense only for high end projects. High transport costs are bearable only in these cases.
4. The. Brazilian quartzites continue to reign supreme in the international markets. Their aesthetics, the varieties, and availability in big volumes, means they are popular not only in residential applications, but also in major projects.
5. Granite is being increasingly seen as the ideal material for exterior applications, especially paving and in landscaping.
6. The experimentation in different textures led to an almost infinite variety of 3D textures now available to designers. These textures are giving what used to be considered commodity materials an entrance into the market of interior decoration. Commodity materials like grey granites were rarely used in home decoration, but the 3D textures mean they are now often used in high end wall claddings.
7. What were previously considered niche applications in natural stone- garden furniture, wine holders, office tables, dining tables, etc. are now becoming a significant source of income for many companies even though the volumes, measured in tons, is low.
8. Natural stone continues to lose market share to other materials in projects where convenience and a tight budget are the determining factors.
9. Thickness stone in the form of stacked stone walls is becoming very popular in many countries. This is especially true in countries with a culture of natural stone, but it is also being specified in high end residential projects in distant places where cost is not an important criteria.
10. Translucent materials remain in fashion for many interior decoration projects.
