New Report on Nantechnologies. Allianz/ OECD

Nanotechnologies are being spoken of as the driving force behind a new industrial revolution. Both private and public-sector spending are constantly increasing. Spending on public research has reached levels of well over EUR 3 billion world-wide, but private sector spending is even faster—it is expected to exceed government spending in 2005. Nanotechnologies will be a major technological force for change in shaping Allianz’s business environment across all industrial sectors in the foreseeable future and are likely to deliver substantial growth opportunities. The size of the market for nanotechnology products is already comparable to the biotechnology sector, while the expected growth rates over the next few years are far higher. At the same time, scientists have raised concerns that the basic building blocks of
nanotechnologies—particles smaller than one billionth of a meter—pose a potential new class of risk to health and the environment. Allianz calls for a precautionary approach based on risk research and good risk management to minimize the likelihood of nanoparticles bringing a new dimension to personal injury and property damage losses or posing third party liability and product-recall risks.

The Allianz Center for Technology and Allianz Global Risks, in co-operation with the OECD International Futures Programme, has reviewed the likely economic impact, investment possibilities, and potential risks of nanotechnologies. This report analyses the opportunities and risks from the perspective of the Allianz Group.

The opinions expressed in this report are those of the Allianz Group and do not engage theOECD or its Member governments.

Bajar PDF completo: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/4/38/35081968.pdf