Cosmetics and toiletries cover a wide range of products and can be divided into four main categories, i.e skin care, hair care, oral hygiene and colour cosmetics. The two most dynamic sectors are the skin care and hair care and much of the growth is seen in the Asia Pacific region ( Shaw 1996, SPC ASIA Oct/Nov 1996). Skin care product sales are expanding regionally, with the greatest growth expected to be in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. All are forecast to grow by at least 10% anually (Weiss,1995). The total skin market in the three countries was about US$550m in 1993, rising to US$650m in 1994 abd optimistically forecast to reach $1 bn by the year 2000. The hair care forecast for Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia are 3.2%, 1.3% and 2.8%, respectively (SPC ASIA Dec.1996). India and China are expected to have the highest growth in both sectors.

Main Research: Rosnah Ismail