Referred to as the largest chemical company in Japan, Shin-Etsu has the largest global market share of polyvinyl chloride, semiconductor silicon and photomask substrates. The company’s organic and inorganic chemicals unit — which represents about half of the company’s sales — makes polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and more than 4,000 types of silicone, while its electronics materials unit makes semiconductor silicon, epoxy molding compounds, and rare earth magnets. Shin-Etsu also produces synthetic quartz used for fiber-optic communications and in LCD panels.