Bangladesh: Cement producers imported US$760,000-worth of raw materials in the 2020 financial year which ended on 30 June 2020, down by 13% year-on-year from US$874,000 in the 2019 financial year. Clinker, calcareous stone, granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) and gypsum imports totalled 18.6Mt, down by 11% from 21.0Mt, compared to annual growth of 15 - 20% since 2010.
The Daily Star newspaper has reported that this was due to decreased cement demand, with sales falling to 65,000t in April 2020 from 125,000t in March 2020 on account of the start of the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Premier Cement managing director Amirul Islam said, “We are not getting the benefits we expected from the government. The sector’s capital is gradually running out, so all kinds of discretionary tax cuts are needed to save this industry.”
Bangladeshi cement producers import raw materials from Thailand, Vietnam and China.