Displaying items by tag: Import

New Zealand: Holcim New Zealand has reported a loss of US$8.9m in 2016 as it changed its business from production to importation and distribution. The subsidiary of LafargeHolcim made a profit of US$58m in 2015, according to the Business Desk news agency. Its distribution costs also rose to US$54m from US$45m. A company spokesperson attributed the rising distribution costs to a transition away from manufacturing.

The company’s results in 2016 benefited from its sale of its lime business to Canada’s Graymont. It also closed its Westport cement plant and invested in import terminals. It operates terminals in Auckland and Timaru and depots in Dunedin, Lyttelton, Nelson, Wellington and Napier.

Mexico: A delegation of the Mexican housing development and promotion chamber (Canadevi) in Baja California has warned that construction companies are considering increasing imports of cement due to the high price of the material in the local market. Jose Luis Padilla, president of Canadevi in the state, said that the chamber had asked LafargeHolcim and Cemex to stop rising prices, according to the El Financiero newspaper. He added that the price of cement rose by 32% year-on-year in 2016, by 15% in January 2017 and by 12% in July 2017. Padilla also said that the chamber and building material firms had signed an agreement to prevent prices rising above the level of inflation.

Nepal: Data from the Nepal Rastra Brank shows that the value of cement imports have doubled year-on-year to US$155m in the first 10 months of the current financial year from US$77m in the same period in 2015 – 2016. The surge in imports has coincided with a fall in the capacity utilisation rate of most cement plants to 60%, according to the Himalayan Times newspaper. The fall in local production has been blamed on difficulties importing clinker, coal and other raw materials. Reduced electricity supplies have also affected production. The Cement Manufacturers Association of Nepal hopes that, if these impediments are reduced, the country could become self reliant in clinker within two years.

Israel: Danny Tal, the Trade Levies Commissioner at the Ministry of Economy and Industry, is investigating a claim that cement from Turkey and Greece is being dumped in the local market. The Melet Har Tuv Company originally made the claim to the ministry, according to the Globes business newspaper. In its claim Melet Har Tuv alleged that cement normally sold in Greece was being solid for about 85% of the value in Israel.

"The complainant has reasonably proved that it manufactures in Israel goods that are similar to the imported goods regarding the raw materials, manufacturing processes, physical attributes, marketing channels, the use and the treatment by consumers,” said Tal.

The country’s biggest cement producer Nesher supported the claim in April 2017 and this helped initiate the investigation. Data provided by Har Tuv to the Trade Levies Commissioner suggest that the market share the local cement companies have fallen following the increase of imports. Nesher’s market share fell to 65% from 75% and Melet Har Tuv’s share fell to 5.8% from 10%. It is alleged that LafargeHolcim is the main company ‘flooding’ the local market.

Fiji: Pacific Cement has stopped cement production due to a breakdown at its plant. Acting Prime Minister, Attorney-General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said that the cement producer stopped production in late May 2017, according to the Pacific News Agency Service. The government intends to allow people to import cement duty free, as long as it meets the AS3972 standard, in order to prevent a cement shortage.

Pacific Cement supplies about 80% of the market in Fiji and it operates the only integrated plant in the territory. The other local supplier in the market is Tengy Cement. Pacific Cement has also agreed to sell 24,000t of surplus clinker to Tengy Cement following government intervention.

Mozambique: Alfredo Sitoe, the general director of the National Norms and Quality Institute (INNOQ), has said that all cement imports must be tested for quality. The new legislation was set up in July 2016 but took effect in January 2017, according to the Mozambique News Agency. Cement importers are required to provide origin details to the INNOQ that will then check certification with the relevant organisation in the exporting country.

Philippines: Two cement importers have asked the Regional Trial Court of Makati to issue a temporary restraining order against a Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) order restricting imports of cement. Fortem Cement and Cohaco Merchandising and Development allege that the Administrative Order 17-02 prevents imports of cement into the country, with the exception of importers operating integrated cement plants, according to the Manilla Bulletin newspaper. The importers say that the legislation will destroy their business. They also allege that the new rules violate anti-competition rules.

The DTI has defended its legislation, although it recognises the freedom of the importers to challenge it through the legal process. The government department says it issued the revised order to help safeguard the safety of consumers by requiring the strict conduct of standards compliance tests on cement imports. The order requires the application of the Philippine Standards licenses on foreign producers of cement imports, Import Commodity Clearance on cement imports and a minimum capitalisation level for importers to prevent smaller importers.

India: Y V Ramana Rao, president of Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI) Vijayawada chapter has said that the building associations have solicited quotes for cement from Chinese producers because local prices are too high. The government has asked local cement producers to cap their prices, according to the Economic Times. However the builders associations have rejected some of the fixed prices as being too high.

Philippines: Albert Manifold, the chief executive officer of CRH, has defended his company’s investment of up to Euro350m in the Philippines despite reporting a 12% drop in sales in the first quarter of 2017. Under questioning from analysts in a conference call admitted that about a quarter of cement demand in the country is currently being served by imports from Southeast Asia that is also reducing local prices, according to the Irish Times. However, he insisted that local producers, including CRH, will have an advantage as they increase production capacity due to constant production and ‘guaranteed’ regulation and certification. Manifold also conceded that his company’s performance in the Philippines illustrates the ‘volatility of emerging markets.’

Ivory Coast: The government has decided to import 150,000t of cement from April to July 2017 to cope with a local shortage. Cement will be imported in a strict agenda including 61,000t in May 2017, 64,000t in June 2017 and 25,000t in July 2017, according to the La Afrique Tribune newspaper. The government is also hoping that on-going cement plant projects will meet local demand when they are commissioned. The country previously imported cement to meet local shortages in 2015 when 300,000t was imported in three phases.