Used primarily as an intermediate in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. It plays a key role in the production of certain antidepressants and antihistamines due to its reactive ketone and halogen groups at positions 3 and 4', which allow further chemical modifications such as nucleophilic substitution or condensation. Also employed in the preparation of specialty organic compounds where selective chlorination is required. Its structure makes it valuable in building more complex molecules in research and development settings.