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Displaying items by tag: Consumption
Spain: Cement consumption in Andalucía decreased by 7% in the first half of 2024 to 1.54Mt. In June 2024, consumption dropped 7.6% to 271,415t. This decline extends to exports of clinker and cement, which fell by 24% to 247,805t, as reported by the Andalusian Cement Manufacturers’ Association (AFCA).
Carmen Díaz, president of AFCA, said "The first half figures are negative due to a slowdown in planned infrastructure execution. Considering the daily consumption in June, having two fewer business days this year than in 2023, the monthly figure would be positive, indicating potential recovery in the construction sector in the second half of 2024."
Catalonia's cement consumption hit by infrastructure investment deficit in first half of 2024
24 July 2024Catalonia: Cement consumption in Catalonia decreased by 3% year-on-year to 1.1Mt in the first half of 2024. Cement production rose by 0.2% year-on-year to 3.21Mt. However, cement and clinker exports dropped by 25% to 1.5Mt.
The president of Ciment Català, Salvador Fernández Capo, said "The continued infrastructure deficit is hindering Catalonia's economic growth, affecting the well-being and quality of life of its citizens and diminishing the competitiveness of the country's economy.”
Spain: Cement consumption in Spain fell by 3.3% in the first half of 2024 to 7.27Mt, a decrease of 0.25Mt from the same period in 2023, according to Oficemen's latest statistics. June 2024 saw a year-on-year decline of 4.2%, with consumption dropping to 1.25Mt. Cement exports also decreased significantly in the first half of 2024, representing a decline of 20.2% year-on-year.
Oficemen's general manager, Aniceto Zaragoza, said "Our forecasts point to a change in trend towards more positive data in the second half of the year. In fact, the figures for average daily consumption, which only consider working days in the comparison, show growth of 5.3%."
Vietnam: The Ministry of Construction has proposed resuming cement sector planning to the prime minister, addressing the critical oversupply affecting the industry. Cement planning ceased six years ago, leading to unregulated project approvals. Vietnam now faces a surplus, with 92 production lines and a total capacity exceeding 120Mt/yr, while domestic consumption lags at under 60Mt/yr and exports are only 30Mt/yr. The construction slowdown exacerbates the issue, with redundant clinker production capacity at approximately 50Mt/yr, leading to risk of cement producers going bust, unless suitable measures are introduced. The latest figures from the Vietnam National Cement Association (VNCA) show that cement plants are running at just 70-75% of their designed capacity.
Deputy CEO of Vicem, Nguyen Thanh Tung, said "Several production lines belonging to our system have to temporarily halt operation, incurred by low consumption and dwindling incomes. Despite all this, we commit to not selling products below the production cost."
Spain: Cement consumption in Spain grew by 0.3% in May 2024 to 1.36Mt, an increase of nearly 3600t compared to May 2023, as reported by the Cement Manufacturers' Association of Spain (Oficemen). Over the first five months of 2024, consumption fell by 3.4% to 6Mt, a decline of 0.21Mt from the same period in 2023. From June 2023 - May 2024, consumption dropped by 4.6% to 14.3Mt, nearly 700,000t less than the previous period.
Meanwhile, exports in May 2024 rose by 11.4% to 0.51Mt, nearly 52,000t more than in May 2023. However, cumulative exports for 2024 have decreased by 18.2% to 1.95Mt. Over the past 12 months, exports totalled 4.76Mt, a 14.7% decline, representing a year-on-year decline of over 800,000t.
Cement consumption drops in Andalusia
03 June 2024Spain: Cement consumption in Andalusia fell by 15% in the first quarter of 2024, to 0.67Mt, marking a decrease of 0.11Mt from the same quarter in 2023. The Cement Manufacturers Group of Andalusia (AFCA) attributes the significant 29% drop in March 2024 to the timing of Holy Week and heavy rainfall, which impacted construction activities. Exports of clinker and cement also decreased by 34.2%, with a volume of 97,609t in the first quarter of 2024. Over the last 12 months, consumption declined by 3.8% to 3.06Mt.
President of AFCA, Carmen Díaz Canabal, said "We will have to wait for the second quarter data to see the real evolution of the behaviour of the cement market, and therefore of construction, during this year."
Spain: Cement consumption has increased by 11.5% year-on-year in April 2024, reaching 1.3Mt, which is 136,000t more than April 2023, according to the latest statistics published by the Cement Manufacturers Association (Oficemen).
For the first four months of 2024, cement consumption amounted to 4.65Mt, marking a year-on-year decline of 4.5% compared to the same period in 2023. This represents a loss of 218,000t. Over the last 12 months (May 2023 - April 2024), cement consumption also fell by 4.5%, with total consumption standing at 14.3Mt, 672,700t less than the previous period.
Exports fell nearly 24% in April, amounting to 387,500t. For the year to date, from January to April 2024, exports have reached 1.45Mt, a decrease of 25.3% compared to the same period in 2023. Over the last 12 months, exports have dropped below 5Mt, nearly 1Mt less than the previous year.
Oficemen's general manager, Aniceto Zaragoza, said "This is the first positive month after ten months of decline. However, this percentage growth was influenced by the calendar effect, as this April had more working days due to Easter being in March, not April as last year. In fact, the average daily consumption figures, which are more sensitive to the number of working days, show a decline of 8.8%."
Update on Pakistan, April 2024
24 April 2024Changes are underway in South Asia’s second largest cement sector, with two legal developments that affect the industry set in motion in the past week. At a national level, the Competition Commission of Pakistan recommended that the government require cement producers to include production and expiry dates on the labels of bagged cement. Meanwhile, in Pakistan’s largest province, Punjab, a new law tightened procedures around the establishment and expansion of cement plants. At the same time, the country’s cement producers began to publish their financial results for the first nine months of the 2024 financial year (FY2024).
During the nine-month period up to 31 March 2024, the Pakistani cement industry sold 34.5Mt of cement, up by 3% year-on-year. Producers have responded to the growth with capacity expansions, including the launch of the new 1.3Mt/yr Line 3 of Attock Cement’s Hub cement plant in Balochistan on 17 April 2023. China-based contractor Hefei Cement Research & Design executed the project, including installation of a Loesche LM 56.3+3 CS vertical roller mill, giving the Hub plant a new, expanded capacity of 3Mt/yr.
Pressure has eased on the operating costs of Pakistani cement production, as inflation slowed and the country received a new government in March 2024, following political unrest in 2022 and 2023. Coal prices also settled back to 2019 levels, after prolonged agitation. Pakistan Today News reported the value of future coal supply contracts as US$93/t for June 2024, down by 2% over six months from US$95/t for January 2024.
Nonetheless, cost optimisation remained a ‘strong focus’ in the growth strategy of Fauji Cement, which switched to using local and Afghan coal at its plants during the past nine months. Its reliance on captive power rose to 60% of consumption, thanks to its commissioning of new waste heat recovery and solar power capacity. During the first nine months of FY2024, the company’s year-on-year sales growth of 14% narrowly offset cost growth of 13%, leaving it with net profit growth of 1%.
Looking more closely, the latest sales data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) shows a stark divergence within cement producers’ markets. While exports recorded 68% year-on-year growth to 5.1Mt, domestic sales fell, by 4% to 29.4Mt. The association further breaks down Pakistani cement sales data into South Pakistan (Balochistan and Sindh) and North Pakistan (all other regions). Domestic sales dropped most sharply in South Pakistan, by 6% to 5.16Mt. In the North, they dropped by 3% to 24.2Mt. Part of the reason was a high base of comparison, following flooding-related reconstruction work nationally during the 2023 financial year. Meanwhile, the government finished rolling out track-and-trace on all cement despatches during the opening months of the current financial year, and commenced the implementation of axle load requirements for cement trucks. APCMA flagged both policies as potentially disruptive to its members’ domestic deliveries, amid a strong infrastructure project pipeline.
Pakistani producers suffer from overcapacity, but have established themselves as an important force in the global export market. They continue to locate new markets, including the UK in January 2024. Lucky Cement was among leading exporters overall, with a large share of its orders originating from Africa.
On 17 April 2024, the government of Punjab province set up a committee to assess new proposed cement projects, with the ultimate goal of conserving water. Falling water tables are considered a significant economic threat in agricultural Punjab. Besides completing an inspection by the new committee, proposed projects must also secure clearance from six different provincial government departments and the local government. While acknowledging the necessity of the cement industry, the government insisted that it will take legal action against any cement plant that exceeds water allowances.
Pakistan’s cement plants have grown in anticipation of a local market boom. Without this strong core of sales, underutilisation will remain troublesome, especially in North Pakistan where exposure is highest. At the same time, APCMA has given expression to the perceived lack of support affecting production and distribution. For an industry with expansionist aims, new restrictions on its growth and operations can feel like an existential menace.
Cement consumption in Spain continues to fall
17 April 2024Spain: Cement consumption has dropped by 10% in the first quarter of 2024, totalling 3.3Mt. This represents an 11% year-on-year decrease compared to the same quarter of 2023, according to the latest data released by Oficemen. The 2024 quarterly decline was influenced by a 23.6% fall in consumption in March 2024 to 1.1Mt, 339,869t less than March 2023. Over the last 12 months (April 2023 - March 2024), consumption fell by 6.4% to 14.1Mt, nearly 1Mt less than in the previous corresponding period of April 2022 – March 2023.
Oficemen general director Aniceto Zaragoza said "Aside from the situational circumstances of March 2024, the year-moving data reflect a negative trend, resulting from 10 months of decline. This is concerning but in line with our forecasts that anticipated a negative start to the year, with a modest recovery in the second half, provided that the international and local situation remains stable.”
Cement exports have declined by 25.1% in the first quarter of 2024, standing at around 1Mt. In March 2024, the decline was 32.4%, with a loss of 178,953t, marking nine months of consecutive declines. Over the year-moving period, the fall is 14%, with a total of 4.8Mt of cement exported. representing a loss of almost 800,000t less than in the previous 12 months.
Ukraine: Data from Ukrcement, the Ukrainian Cement Association, show that cement consumption grew by 17% from 4.6Mt in 2022 to 5.4Mt in 2023. Pavlo Kachur, the head of Ukrcement, said that consumption is expected to continue growing modestly in 2024, according to Interfax-Ukraine. He added that the country exported 1.24Mt of cement in 2023.
Before Russia invaded the country in 2022 it reported consumption of 10.5Mt in 2021. It has a production capacity of 13.6Mt/yr. Despite the ongoing war the local cement sector says it is considering plans to meet future market demand such as repairing plants in Balakliya and Kramatorsk and even, potentially, building new production lines.