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Mixed results from Turkish producers in first half of 2012 24 October 2012
Turkey: More Turkish cement manufacturers have released first half results for 2012, which continue the mixed trend seen from other producers.
Aslan Çimento saw a marginal decrease in its revenue, by 0.37% in the first half of 2012. It recorded total revenues of Euro29.5m for the half, making Euro3.0m in profit. In the second quarter of 2012 it Aslan had a revenue of Euro17.5m and profit of Euro2.9m.
Göltaş Göller Bölgesı Çimento saw total revenues of Euro67.5m in the first half of 2012, a 73.5% increase compared to the first half of 2011. Its net profit was also up, growing by 54.5 to Euro9.1m. Over the three months to 30 June 2012, the company had a total revenue of Euro50.3m, representing an increase of 85.4% compared to the second quarter of 2011. In the three month period it saw a net profit of Euro0.85m.
Konya Çimento's results showed a 256% year-on-year increase in its net profit, from a low base. It recorded a net profit of Euro6.83m compared to Euro1.92m in the same period of 2011. Konya's total revenue was up by 3.8% to Euro48.0m in the first half of 2012 compared to Euro46.5m in the first half of 2011.
Çimentas Izmir Çimento Fabrikasi saw its total revenue increase by 1.72% to Euro117.7m in the first half of 2012, recording a net profit of Euro2.8m. In the course of the second quarter of 2012, which ended on 30 June 2012, the company recorded a revenue of Euro72.5m, an increase of 5.6% year-on-year. It saw a quarterly net profit of Euro2.1m.
Cemex España to cut 390 jobs 23 October 2012
Spain: Cemex España, the Spanish subsidiary of Mexican cement company Cemex, plans to cut around 390 jobs. This represents 22% of its 1740 current employees. The company has attributed its decision to flagging cement consumption in Spain, amid continued ecomonic turmoil, austerity measures and unemployment.
UltraTech net profit nearly doubles 22 October 2012
India: UltraTech Cement, an Aditya Birla Group company, has posted a 97% rise in net profit to US$102.5m in the second quarter of the 2012 fiscal year from US$51.9m in 2011 after it recorded a strong pick-up in demand for cement.
Quarterly net sales stood at US$875m compared year-on-year to US$728m, a rise of 20%. However, variable costs rose by 8% in the quarter ending 30 September 2012. "This was mainly on account of higher raw material prices, which are linked to the last increase in railway freight and increase in diesel prices," said UltraTech in a press release.
The company's initiative towards setting up additional clinkerisation plants at Chhattisgarh and Karnataka are expected to be operational from early 2013-14. The company's cement capacity will be enhanced by 10.2Mt/yr.
Diverging fortunes in Europe and the Americas
Written by Global Cement Staff
17 October 2012
News from Mexico and the US over the past week confirms the contrasting fortunes of the cement industry in the 'Old World' and the 'New World,' of Europe and North America. First, Cemex reported a significantly reduced loss of US$203m in its third quarter, compared with a loss of US$730m in 2011. However, the firm's European units again faired worse than other regions.
The European problem is not limited to Cemex, but while much of the continent has seen a poor 2012 so far, North America appears to be in the midst of a construction renaissance. HeidelbergCement estimates US cement sales growth of 8-11% in 2012. In Mexico, a strong and growing industry, it has also been announced that the Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim had partly financed a new US$300m plant in Mexico, due to go into production early in 2013.
In light of this apparent upward trend in North America, it is surprising that France's Lafarge has agreed to sell two more of its US cement plants, this time to Eagle Materials. If the Eagle deal is approved, it will represent (along with the May 2011 sale of Lafarge's Roberta and Harleyville plants to Cementos Argos) a continued and substantial reduction in Lafarge's presence in the US. In under 18 months, Lafarge will have offloaded four plants, taking its total from 12 to eight.
Lafarge's decision to sell to Eagle seems like an attempt to meet its own debt-reduction schedule. Yet to do this it may be losing important territory in North America. This can't have been an easy decision.
Mexican billionaire bankrolls new US$300m plant 17 October 2012
Mexico: Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim and businessman Antonio del Valle have joined forces in a new cement venture in Mexico that plans to start operations in early 2013 with a capacity of 1Mt/yr.
Cementos Fortaleza, part of business group Elementia, is nearing completion of a plant in central Mexico at an investment of US$300m. In its initial phase the plant is expected to supply cement to retail users in central Mexico. The plant's first deliveries are expected in February 2013. Cementos Fortaleza will have an estimated 3% market share to begin with. It will compete with companies such as market leader Cemex and Holcim Apasco, a unit of Switzerland's Holcim.
Elementia Chief Executive Eduardo Musalem said at a press conference that Slim, through his company Grupo Carso SAB owns 46% of the Elementia and Del Valle 54%. Del Valle is one of the principal shareholders and honourary chairman for life of chemicals company Mexichem SAB.