Displaying items by tag: Sales
Indonesian cement sales fall in September 2016
12 October 2016Indonesia: The Indonesian Cement Association (ASI) has reported that cement sales in September 2016 fell by 3.3% to 5.64Mt compared to August 2016. It blamed the decline on lower demand from the local housing industry. Cement sales fell sharply in Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan, while eastern parts of Indonesia, including Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua, saw an increase in sales, according to the Jakarta Globe.
"Weakening sales may be due to the lower demand from houses and apartments. Demand from infrastructure projects has been picking up since the second quarter of 2016, but still can't make up for the lack of demand from the property sector," said ASI chairman Widodo Santoso.
National cement sales rose by 2.95% year-on-year to 44.7Mt in the first nine months of 2016 and the ASI expects sales growth of 3 – 4% for 2016. However, cement producers fear that this growth rate will be insufficient to sustain investments in new cement plants. The ASI says that cement production in Indonesia has exceeded demand by more than 30%.
Vietnam cement sales may reach 95Mt/yr by 2020
22 September 2016Vietnam: Vietnam’s cement sales are predicted to reach 95Mt by 2020 says Nguyen Quang Cung, chairman of the Vietnam Cement Association (VNCA). The total will include 80Mt/yr of domestic sales and 15Mt/yr of clinker and cement exports, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
Vietnam’s domestic cement sales are predicted to rise by 5 - 5.5Mt/yr to hit 80Mt by 2020. The country’s cement and clinker exports will stay at 15Mt/yr, Cung added, noting that Vietnam will be able to satisfy the demand. He also predicted that the country’s cement sales will reach 77Mt in 2016, including of 60Mt of domestic sales and 15.5 – 17Mt of exports.
The Ministry of Construction previously forecast that Vietnam’s sales of cement and clinker would rise 4 - 7% year-on-year to 75 – 77Mt in 2016 despite on-going economic problems.
Pakistan records strong cement sales growth in mid-2016 despite Afghan export drop
07 September 2016Pakistan: Total cement despatches in Pakistand during the first two months of the current fiscal year clocked up at 4.9Mt, a 14% increase from 4.3Mt recorded in same period of 2015-16. However, according to data released by the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA), overall export despatches have decreased: Exports in July-August were down almost 1% on a year-on-year basis to 1.022Mt. Overall domestic sales in August rose 21% to 3.02Mt from 2.5Mt in August 2015. Cement sales in the north zone were 2.495Mt in August, up 22.6% from a year ago. In the south zone sales recorded an increase of 13.2% at 0.532Mt from the same month of 2015.
Exports to Afghanistan dropped 12% to 346,928t in July-August on an annual basis, APCMA data shows. Exports by sea suffered even more. As opposed to 537,120t exported during the first two months of the preceding fiscal year, exports by sea in July-August 2016 were 407,120t, showing 24% decline on an annual basis.
However, increased exports to India made up for these shortfalls to some extent. Exports to India during the first two months of the current fiscal year grew 167% year on year to 268,230t.
A spokesman for the APCMA said the industry has been doubling its production capacity every seven to eight years. The buoyancy in the sector on the back of healthy domestic consumption during the last 20 months has encouraged the industry players to go for further capacity expansion. He said growth in the sector during the first two months of the fiscal year was in spite of Eid holidays. Growth of domestic consumption in August was also 'impressive,' as consistent rains failed to hurt construction activities, he added. He said upcoming projects along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will further boost cement consumption.
The industry has yet to realise its export potential due to the lack of support from the government. The loss of the Afghanistan market is a matter of concern for the industry, which has been marginalised there because of subsidised Iranian exports.
Philippines: Cement sales have risen by 10.7% year-on-year to 13.2Mt in the first half of 2016 due to increased government spending on infrastructure and improved private sector involvement in construction. Ernesto Ordoñez, president of the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines, also cited good weather as helping drive up sales, in comments made to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Private sector construction constitutes 76% of cement sales, while public construction projects use the remaining 24%.
Fiji: Pacific Cement’s sakes volumes of cement have increased by 45% to 150,561t in the last year. 104,000t of cement was sold locally, according to the Fiji Times newspaper. General manager Sowani Tuidrola attributed the boost in sales to growth in the local market. At present Pacific Cement’s plant produces 500t/day of cement. The cement producer exports cement to Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Tarawa, Solomon Islands, Cook Islands, Wallis and Futuna, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste.
Indonesia: Semen Indonesia’s cement sales volumes rose by 1.2% year-on-year to 12.4Mt in the first half of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015. Local sales rose by 1.6% to 12.2Mt but export volumes fell sharply by 20.1% to 0.19Mt. The decline in export sales was attributed to the Indarung cement plant in Padang province.
Cement consumption for the country as a whole rose by 3.1% to 29.5Mt for the first half of 2016, according to Indonesian Cement Association data. Increases in consumption were noted in most regions, with the exception of Kalimantan, where consumption fell by 16% to 2Mt. Notable increases in consumptions were recorded in Sulawesi, Maluku and West Papua. Overall exports of cement fell by 19.3% to 0.21Mt but clinker exports rose by 380% to 0.42Mt in the period.
Brazil: Jose Otavio Carneiro de Carvalho, president of the National Union of the Cement Industry (SNIC), estimates that the Brazilian domestic market will decrease by 12% in 2016, according to the Folha newspaper. SNIC data shows that cement sales fell by 11% year-on-year to 61Mt/yr for the June 2015 to May 2016 period from 69Mt in the previous year. Sales so far in 2016 have fallen by 14% to 23Mt for the January to May 2016 period from 27Mt from the previous year. SNIC have suggested that demand will only resume from 2017 and that companies may be holding back investment to ensure it.
Philippines: Ernesto Ordoñez, the president Ernesto Ordoñez Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CEMAP), has said sales in the first three months of 2016 rose by 13% year-on-year to 6.43Mt in the first three months of 2016 from 5.7Mt in the same period in 2015. It was driven by strong construction activity in the country according to the Philippines Star newspaper.
“Demand will continue to be strong, especially with presumptive president Duterte saying that infrastructure will remain a high priority during his administration,” said Ordoñez. He added that the local cement industry benefitted from the higher infrastructure budget being allocated for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). CEMPA forecast that construction growth in both the pubic and private sectors will remain strong in 2016.
Brazil: Cement sales have fallen by 14.5% year-on-year to 13.9Mt in the first quarter of 2016 from 16.3Mt in the same period in 2015 according to the Sindicato Nacional da Indústria do Cimento (SNIC). Local cement companies estimate that sales and apparent consumption will fall by up to 13% in 2016.
A survey by SNIC shows the sales began falling in mid March 2014 due to problems in the construction industry. However, SNIC president José Otávio de Carvalho said that this is not the worst crisis faced by the cement industry. In 1982 cement consumption fell to 19Mt from 27Mt in 1982.
Pakistan cement despatches hit high in March 2016
07 April 2016Pakistan: The Pakistan cement industry has recorded its highest ever dispatches of 3.58Mt in March 2016, an increase of 19% year-on-year from 3Mt in March 2015. Exports have grown by 21% to 0.53Mt from 0.44Mt in March 2016. The All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) described the growth as ‘encouraging’ as it enabled the industry to hit a capacity utilisation rate of 95%. However, despite this high rate the APCMA added that it was still being accused of price fixing, according to local press.
For the nine months from July 2015 to March 2016 overall cement despatches rose by 9.95% year-on-year to 28.3Mt. Local despatches in the north and south of the country have both shown growth respectively. However, exports fell by 19% to 4.41Mt from 5.44Mt. The year so far has been poor for exports, only picking up growth from February 2016 onwards.