06 August 2025

India: The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the 100% acquisition of Jaiprakash Associates by Dalmia Cement (Bharat). The transaction is part of a corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016.

Dalmia Cement (Bharat) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dalmia Bharat, the ultimate parent of the Dalmia Bharat Group.

US: The government has imposed a 20% import tax on cement from Vietnam, effective from 1 August 2025, doubling the previous 10% rate, according to the Vietnam Cement Association. It said that the move would have a significant impact on cement exporters, as Vietnam is the second largest cement supplier to the US, after Türkiye. It also said that the higher tariffs would now lead to costs being passed on to consumers, with increasing cement prices in the US expected.

Argentina: Cement consumption reached 0.88Mt in July 2025, a 10% increase compared to June 2025, although it remained 3% lower than July 2024, according to data from the Asociación de Fabricantes de Cemento Portland (AFCP). Despatches totalled 0.89Mt, down by 3% year-on-year but up by 9% month-on-month.

Exports fell to 3502t in July 2025 from 5250t in June 2025, while imports increased to 312t from 147t the previous month. Accumulated consumption for the first seven months of 2025 stood at 5.66Mt, up by 10% from the same period in 2024. Despatches for the first seven months of 2025 reached 5.70Mt, marking a 10% increase year-on-year.

Saudi Arabia: City Cement says that the Capital Market Authority (CMA) has declined to approve its proposed acquisition of Umm Al Qura Cement. The decision was reportedly due to a lack of certain regulatory requirements. In a market statement City Cement said that it was committed to full regulatory compliance and would consider its options regarding resubmitting the offer.

City Cement announced in late 2022 that it was preparing to buy Umm Al Qura Cement. It then started taking action towards the transaction in late 2024 onwards.

Japan: Taiheiyo Cement says it started using an artificial intelligence-based (AI) ship allocation optimisation system in May 2025. Software company Grid provided the technology for the project. The companies say that this is the first such application in the domestic cement industry.

The new ship allocation system analyses large volumess of transportation data and generates optimal ship allocation plans while considering various constraints. It is intended to: reduce transportation costs such as fuel; optimise courses and loading efficiency, with an expected 10% reduction of fuel consumption at the planning stage; enhance inventory management; and reduce planning time by more than 50% compared to manual planning methods.