China: Japan’s Mitsubishi Materials has signed an agreement to sell its 66.7% stake in Yantai Mitsubishi Cement in Shandong to a subsidiary of China National Building Material (CNBM). No value for the sale has been revealed, according to Nikkei. Yantai Mitsubishi has a cement production capacity of 1.2Mt/yr. Mitsubishi Materials will also liquidate two of its Chinese cement admixture producers: one in Shandong and the other in Jiangsu.
The materials producer has blamed the decision on cement production overcapacity in the Chinese market and increasing environmental regulations. Mitsubishi Materials was ordered to halt production three times in 2016. It intends to focus on the US market where infrastructure spending is expected to boost the cement market.
