04 February 2016
Philippines cement industry grows 14% in 2015 04 February 2016
Philippines: Cement sales volumes grew by 14.3% to 24.4Mt in 2015 according to the Cement Manufacturer's Association of the Philippines (CEMAP). The sales volume was 21.3Mt in 2014. In the fourth quarter of 2015 cement sales rose by 16.6% year-on-year to 6.1Mt from 5.2Mt in the same period in 2014.
CEMAP president Ernie Ordonez attributed the growth to higher investments in construction of the public sector backed with the private sector's confidence in the government, new housing projects with low interest rates and better weather in 2015.
LafargeHolcim confirms revised sale plan for Lafarge India 04 February 2016
India: LafargeHolcim has confirmed that it is considering selling its subsidiary Lafarge India. The sale will require the approval of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) as an alternate remedy for the merger of the Group's legacy companies. Lafarge India has a cement production capacity of 11Mt/yr.
The announcement follows a regulatory filing by Birla Corporation stating that is considering taking legal action against LafargeHolcim for stopping a previous deal. However, LafargeHolcim has not said why it terminated the deal with Birla Corporation.
Originally LafargeHolcim was in discussion with Birla Corporation for the sale of the Jojobera and Sonadih cement plants in Eastern India that was previously announced. Both plants had a combined cement production capacity of 5.1Mt/yr. Due to the current regulatory issues relating to the transfer of mining rights captive and critical to the two plants, LafargeHolcim was obliged to submit an alternate remedy to the CCI to ensure compliance with the order.
LafargeHolcim now says that an 'alternate remedy' is under consideration by the CCI.
Cemex announces return to positive income in 2015 04 February 2016
Mexico: Cemex has announced its results for the fourth quarter and full year 2015. On a like-for-like basis, for ongoing operations and adjusting for currency fluctuations, consolidated net sales increased by 2% during the fourth quarter of 2015 to US$3.4bn. They rose by 5% for the full year to US$14.1bn. Operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) (also on a like-for-like basis) increased by 7% during the fourth quarter to US$663m and went up by 9% for the full year to US$2.6bn.
The increase in consolidated net sales, on a like-to-like basis, was due to higher prices of Cemex's products, in local currency terms, across most of its operations, as well as higher volumes in the US, the Mediterranean and Asia. On a like-for-like basis, operating earnings before other expenses, net, in the fourth quarter increased by 11% to US$410m and in the full year increased by 17% to US$1.7bn versus the same periods in 2014.
Fernando A Gonzalez, Cemex Chief Executive Officer, said, "Despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, which has affected many of our markets, our industry and Cemex in particular, we have been able to meet these challenges and deliver strong operating and financial results, on a like-to-like basis."
"Our full-year net income was positive for the first time in six years. In addition, our operating EBITDA increased by 9%, on a like-to-like basis, reflecting our cost-reduction program of US$150m as well as a positive operating leverage in several of our markets, which translated into a 1.1 percentage-point improvement in operating EBITDA margin. I am particularly pleased with the growth in our free cash flow after maintenance capex of more than US$480 million, which enabled us to reduce our debt by close to US$1bn during the year."
Sales in Cemex's Mexican operations decreased 19% in the fourth quarter of 2015 to US$672m, compared with US$827m in the fourth quarter of 2014. Operating EBITDA decreased by 10% to US$231m versus the same period of last year.
Cemex's operations in the United States reported net sales of US$967m in the fourth quarter of 2015, up by 5% from the same period in 2014. Operating EBITDA increased 26% to US$173m in the quarter, versus US$138m in the same quarter of 2014.
In Northern Europe, net sales for the fourth quarter of 2015 decreased 18% to US$738m, compared with US$901m in the fourth quarter of 2014. Operating EBITDA was US$71m for the quarter, 14% lower than the same period of 2014.
Fourth-quarter net sales in the Mediterranean region were US$370m, 4% higher compared with US$357m during the fourth quarter of 2014. Operating EBITDA decreased 5% to US$63m for the quarter versus the same period in 2014.
Cemex's operations in South, Central America and the Caribbean reported net sales of US$436m during the fourth quarter of 2015, representing a decrease of 15% over the same period of 2014. Operating EBITDA decreased 25% to US$125m in the fourth quarter of 2015, from US$165m in the fourth quarter of 2014.
Operations in Asia reported a 4% increase in net sales for the fourth quarter of 2015 to US$162m, versus the fourth quarter of 2014, and operating EBITDA for the quarter was US$46m, up by 4% from the same period of 2014.