Displaying items by tag: market

Pakistan: All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) members despatched 52.9Mt of cement in the 2022 financial year, down by 7.9% year-on-year from 57.4Mt in the 2021 financial year. The News International newspaper has reported that exports fell by 44% year-on-year to 5.25Mt from 9.31Mt. In June 2022, despatches rose by 1% year-on-year to 5.26Mt from 5.21Mt. Exports declined by 48% to 284,000t from 543,000t. APCMA said that high costs caused the decline, which continues into the current 2023 financial year (which begun on 1 July 2022).

An association spokesperson said “The export of cement has declined massively during the ongoing financial year due to the high cost of production.”

Australia/Canada: Fortex and Nidus3D have won contracts to become Denmark-based COBOD’s distribution partners for the Australian and Canadian markets respectively. Nidus3D previously printed a multi-unit residential building, the first of its kind in North America, using COBOD’s 3D printing equipment. Meanwhile, the supplier says that its first BOD2 3D printer available on the Australian market will arrive there in late 2022.

Regarding the Australian contract with Fortex, COBOD noted that it will make its equipment available on six different continents.

China: Mudajaya Group Berhad has concluded a deal to acquire Real Jade Limited for US$51m. The deal marks the Malaysia-based conglomerate’s first expansion into the Chinese market. Real Jade Limited operates the 1Mt/yr Shandong integrated cement plant. It employs 50 people in Shandong Province.

Vietnam: Brokerage company Mirae Asset Securities Vietnam (MASVN) expects cement producers that specialise in exports to switch to the domestic market due to reduced demand in China. The export market to China has slowed down due its Zero-Covid policy and a reduced real estate market, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper. Major local exporters include Vissai Ninh Binh, Hoang Mai and Thanh Thang. China accounted for 40% of Vietnam’s cement exports in 2021. If these companies switch to the local market then it is expected to create more competition for producers that are more domestically aligned, including Vicem Ha Tien, FICO and Holcim Vietnam

South Africa: PPC’s full-year consolidated sales were US$624m in the 2022 financial year, which ended on 31 March 2022, up by 11% year-on-year from US$561m in the 2021 financial year. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 6.9% to US$94.5m from US$101m. During the year, the group reduced its debt by 55% to US$63m from US$139m.

The group noted high cement demand across its markets in the 2022 financial year, including a sales volumes increase of 28% year-on-year in Zimbabwe. It also noted a 19% year-on-year increase in South African cement imports, mainly from Vietnam, which constituted 10% of sales in the 2022 financial year. PPC said that it will ‘immediately make additional capacity available’ to capture the increased demand through the rest of 2023 financial year.

Argentina: The National Commission for the Defence of Competition (CNDC) has concluded an investigation into the cement industry with the finding that all four Argentinian cement producers colluded to maintain high prices between 2013 and 2018. Cementera Avellaneda, Holcim Argentina, Loma Negra and Petroquímica Comodoro Rivadavia (PCR) reportedly increased their sales by US$178m between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2018 through cost overruns generated by their control of local markets.

The CNDC ordered the Portland Cement Manufacturers Association (AFCP) to refrain from distributing competitively sensitive information production, dispatches and imports information between its member companies.

India: Star Cement plans to invest US$129m to establish a new 3Mt/yr clinker line. BusinessLine Online News has reported that producer currently operates 2.8Mt/yr-worth of clinker capacity across two units in Meghalaya. Star Cement says that it plans to increase its presence in the Northeast India, Bihar and West Bengal markets. It will additionally invest US$90 – 103m to establish two new grinding units with a combined capacity of 4Mt/yr at Guwahati and Silchar in Assam.

Star Cement said that projected infrastructure investment growth in Northeast India inspired its investment decision, while it opted for a 3Mt/yr kiln over a 2Mt/yr alternative due to the improved efficiencies it offers.

Philippines: The Philippines imported 6.47Mt of cement from Vietnam in 2021, 91% of a total 7.11Mt of cement imported in the year. The Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CeMAP) recorded that total imports increased by 14% year-on-year from 6.25Mt of cement in 2020, while imports from Vietnam increased by 20% year-on-year from 5.4Mt.

The Manila Bulletin newspaper has reported that Philippine cement producers increased their production capacity by 23% year-on-year to 35.3Mt/yr at the beginning of 2022. CeMAP projected further capacity growth of 55% to 54.8Mt/yr by the end of 2025, against a domestic demand that year of 66Mt/yr.

Russia: SibCem’s first vice president Gennady Rasskazov says that the local production cost of cement is expected to rise by 30% year-on-year in 2022 due to the new ‘economic circumstances’ the country faces. He added that, due to economic sanctions, the price of coal rose by 76 - 86%, goods and materials by 55%, diesel by 30%, oils and lubricants by 83% and transport and logistics costs by 14 - 24% in the first quarter of 2022. The average growth in worker pay at SibCem will rise by 30% in 2022 as the company has implemented indexed salaries. Rasskazov made the comments at a meeting with cement producers, consumers and local officials at the Novosibirsk State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering.

Cameroon: The Cameroon Minister of Trade Luc-Magloire Mbarga has authorised cement producers and importers to begin importing more cement from Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in order to combat a local shortage. The Business in Cameroon newspaper has reported that Mbarga said that authorisation will operate temporarily, until high cement prices drop.

In 2021, Cameroon produced 4.5Mt of cement. Its domestic consumption was 4Mt, up by 14% year-on-year from 3.5Mt in 2021.