05 February 2016
Pakistan cement exports in decline since July 2015 05 February 2016
Pakistan: Data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) show that exports have been in decline since July 2015. Exports declined by 24% year-on-year to 3.4Mt in the seven month period between July 2015 and January 2016 compared to 4.5Mt in the same period in the previous year. However, domestic cement consumption has risen in the same period, according to local press.
"A substantial reduction in the exports has drastically affected foreign exchange earnings of the country and cement makers are finding it difficult to maintain their existence in export markets because of high costs of business in Pakistan and the absence of export incentives," said an APCMA spokesman.
Cement despatches between July 2015 and January 2016 increased by 6.4% year-on-year to about 21Mt compared to about 20Mt previously. Cement plants sales volumes in the north of the country grew by 14% year-on-year to 14.8Mt from 13Mt. These producers saw exports fall by 22.4% to 2.2Mt from 2.8Mt. Cement plant sales volumes in the south grew by 23% year-on-year to 3Mt from 2.5Mt. These producers saw exports fall by 29.2% to 29.2% from 1.8Mt.
The APCMA recommended that the government should impose an additional 20% duty for cement imports alongside the existing customs duty to protect the local cement industry. It added that taxes on energy inputs such as a gas and coal should be reduced and measures put in place to make exports more competitive.
India: Reliance Infrastructure has sold its cement business to Birla Corporation for US$709m to lower its debt. The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals," the company said.
"Reliance Infrastructure today announced the signing of share purchase agreement with Birla Corporation Limited, the flagship Company of the M P Birla Group, in relation to 100% sale of its subsidiary RCCPL," the company said in a statement. It added that SBI Capital Markets acted as the financial advisors to Reliance Infrastructure for this transaction.
Reliance Infrastructure has an integrated cement production capacity of 5.08Mt/yr at Maihar, Madhya Pradesh and Kundanganj, Uttar Pradesh and a 0.5Mt/yr cement grinding unit at Butibori, Maharashtra. The deal was valued at US$140/t of cement production capacity.
Akmenes Cementas revenue drops by 6% to Euro55.4m in 2015 05 February 2016
Lithuania: Akmenes Cementas has reported that its revenue fell by 6% year-on-year to Euro55.4m in 2015 from Euro59.2m in 2014. It sold nearly 1Mt of cement in 2015. Nearly half of its revenue came from exports markets in Poland, Scandinavia and Kaliningrad, according to local press.
Akmenes Cementas CEO, Arturas Zaremba, told Verslo Zinios that cement consumption in Lithuania fell by 5% in 2014 and by 7% in 2015. He blamed this on increased competition from cement producers in Belarus.
Jordan: Lafarge Jordan has proposed a US$2.8bn plan to replace its Fuheis cement plant with an urban development, according to the Jordan Times. The company sent an official letter to the Investment Commission in October 2015 informing them about the plan but still has not received any response. The Fuheis cement plant has been non-operational since 2011 when it was converted to petcoke but the local community objected.
Vicat like-for-like sales fall by 4.4% in 2015 05 February 2016
France: The Vicat group has today reported that its sales, at constant scope and exchange rates, fell by 4.4% in 2015. Reported sales rose slightly, by 1.5% year-on-year to Euro2.46bn in 2015, compared to Euro2.43bn in 2014. Cement sales fell by 0.4% to Euro1.26bn from Euro1.26bn.
"The sales growth achieved by the Vicat group in 2015 again reflected a contrasting picture from one region to another. Business momentum in the United States and Asia helped to offset the impact of a more challenging macroeconomic and competitive environment in West Africa and the Middle East, as well as in Europe. Notably, the group's activity returned to growth in France in the fourth quarter, helped by a positive weather effect and a stabilising industry environment," said the Group's Chairman and CEO, Guy Sidos.
By region, Vicat noted falls in sales in its cement business in France and Europe.
This decline was blamed on a volume contraction and a slight decrease in average selling prices. Sales in the US grew by 23.6% on a like-for-like basis in 2015 due to high volumes, strong momentum in the south-eastern US and price increases. Sales in Asia grew by 3.1% on a like-for-like basis driven by increases in Turkey and India despite a decrease in Kazakhstan. Notably, Vicat reported that its sales rose in India, despite falling volumes due to price increases. Sales in Africa and the Middle East fell by 16.6% on a like-for-like basis, mainly due to a steep fall in business in Egypt.
Reported sales volumes in cement fell by 3.6% to 19.8Mt in 2015 compared to 20.5Mt in 2014.