Displaying items by tag: Price

Philippines: Ramon Lopez, the head of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), says that there is no need to impose a price cap on cement yet. However, he said that the government might intervene if the price of cement reached around US$4.6/bag, according to the Philippine Star newspaper. The DTI applied a US$4/t tariff on imported cement in mid-January 2019 for a period of 200 days in response to a surge in imports.

UK: Refractory manufacturer RHI Magnesita has increased its prices for industrial and steel users by 5%. It says the rise is a consequence of the persistent increase in operating, raw materials, manufacturing, environmental and regulatory costs. The increase has been applied to the whole product range including basic (magnesia and dolomite based) and non-basic products, varying in a range of 3% to 20%. Customers have already started to be informed accordingly.

The company said that global scarcity of raw materials was still evident, mainly due to Chinese environmental regulations that have restricted mining and processing. Since 2017 there has been a ‘step’ change in refractory raw material production as China has implemented new environmental standards, which adjusted the level of production to global standards. Consequently, the refractory industry has been faced with supply shortages, leading to elevated raw material prices especially in higher grade dead burned and fused magnesia. This situation is expected to continue in 2019 although in the medium term prices are expected to fall below levels seen before 2017.

Philippines: Ramon Lopez, the secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), says that a suggested retail price (SRP) for cement is not a priority following the introduction of tariffs in imports. He added that prices had barely changed since the safeguard duty started in February 2019, according to the Manila Times newspaper. The Tariff Commission is currently considering whether to add additional tariffs to cement imports. A public hearing is set on for early May 2019 where it may extend the import duties.

Vietnam: A 8.36% rise in electricity prices in late March 2019 is set to cause an increase in the price of cement. The Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (VICEM) said that cement producers had also been hit by an increase in coal prices, according to the Vietnam News Agency. The rise in the price of coal follows a lack of supply from the Vietnam National Coal and Minerals Industry Holding Group (VINACOMIN) leading to producers to import coal. Cong Thanh Cement has not raise its retail prices but has charged distributors more. Nguyen Quang Cung, chairman of the Vietnam Cement Association, said that producers were not surprised by increase in electricity prices and had been preparing for it.

Senegal: Momar Ndao, the president of the Consumer Association of Senegal, has asked the government to place controls on the price of cement. His comments followed an increase in the price of cement set by local producers, according to the Senegalese News Agency. He proposed that a technical commission study the situation and make recommendations to the National Consumer Council.

Philippines: Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Ruth Castelo says that the government is considering implementing a suggested retail price (SRP) on cement. However, cement companies have previously resisted sharing information with the government to help it devise a SRP, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The DTI is considering publishing a SRP for cement due to consumer concerns about prices rises following newly introduced tariffs on imports. To do so it will need cement producer costs for labour, raw materials, fuels and logistics.

India: The Builders Association of India has urged that the state government of Tamil Nadu take measures to reduce the price of cement following a 37% rise in the cost of the commodity. Chairman S Ayyanathan said cement prices had witnessed ‘sharp’ increase in the last 10 days, despite the cost of raw materials, labour and transportation remaining static, according to the Hindu newspaper. He also cited falling demand for cement due to a slowdown in construction activity in the state.

Kyrgyzstan: Shukhrat Sabirov, the head of the State Antimonopoly agency, has reported to parliament that South Kyrgyz Cement was fined for selling exported cement at a price lower than it sells cement locally. The official made the comment in response to questions from a member of parliament, according to Kyrgyzstan Newsline.

China: Data from the National Development and Reform Commission reports that the profits of local cement companies more than doubled to US$64bn in 2018 compared to 2017. Cement output grew by 3% year-on-year to 2.18Bnt, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Cement sector growth has been attributed to rising cement prices. In December 2018 the average price of cement was 10.6% higher than at the same time in 2017.

India: State-owned producer Malabar Cements will increase production following reduced production over the last three months. The state government of Kerala has intervened following price rises, according to the Hindu newspaper. Malabar Cement sells around 6 - 8% of the cement sold in the state. The state government is also considering regulating the price of cement.