Basic Chemical Manufacturers NAICS 3251

Sep 20, 2025 - Cyber Threats Evolve, Threatening Chemical Manufacturers

• As chemical manufacturers adopt cloud-based analytics and remote monitoring, cyber criminals are pivoting from traditional IT infiltration to exploiting misconfigured cloud access and weak credential controls, Chemical Processing reports citing a new study from data security firm Rubrik Zero Labs. The State of Data Security 2025: A Distributed Crisis report concludes that while the transition to multi-cloud hybrid environments is a milestone in the history of business computing, it comes with a high cost in terms of security risks. Threat actors increasingly are exploiting weaknesses like the data sprawl in multi-cloud environments and employing evolving techniques such as identity-based strategies, which now account for most attacks. The Rubrik data cites a 26% increase in cloud intrusions and 79% malware-free attacks. Chemical manufacturers that adopt cloud-enabled operations without understanding the associated risks are vulnerable to extortion, data breaches, and data damage, per the Rubrik report.
• If realized, early predictions for a dynamic 2025 Atlantic hurricane season could spell trouble for the petrochemical industry and the basic chemical manufacturers that rely on it for feedstocks, according to AccuWeather. In May, AccuWeather meteorologists predicted 13 to 18 storms, of which 7 to 10 will be hurricanes. Water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean are already well above historical averages, and will stay warm throughout most of the year, priming storms for explosive development. With facilities concentrated along the Gulf Coast in Texas and Louisiana, basic chemical manufacturers are especially vulnerable to tropical storms and hurricanes, which can disrupt operations. Hurricane experts at Colorado State University are predicting a 70% storm chance and 44% hurricane chance this year for Texas, and 74% storm chance and 46% hurricane chance for Louisiana.

• Chemical manufacturers and refiners could see the permitting process for new chemicals accelerate under action taken by the EPA to repeal a Biden-era amendment to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), Chemical Processing reports. As part of the Trump administration’s sweeping deregulation efforts, the EPA under its new administrator Lee Zeldin has announced plans to reconsider the regulation governing the review of chemicals already in commerce. Also, an amendment to the TSCA, which placed stricter requirements on the new chemicals review process, has come under fire by the industry and republican lawmakers who say places unnecessary burdens on chemical manufacturers and refiners by slowing the permitting process and inhibiting the availability of chemicals. The EPA’s action to streamline chemical reviews came just days after the agency issued new guidance directing that any spending exceeding $50,000 requires approval from the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency.
• Producer prices for basic chemical manufacturers dipped 0.4% in August compared to a year ago, after falling 2.1% in the previous August-versus-August annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Producer prices, which peaked in mid-2022, are gradually recovering from low demand as the industry destocked from record high inventory levels in 2023 and 2024. Employment by the industry shrank 1.6% year over year in July, while the average wage at basic chemical manufacturers rose 4.9% over the same period to a new high of $42.21 per hour, BLS data show.