Displaying items by tag: Import
Ghana: Ghana has lost over US$13m due to imports of around 500,000t of bagged cement the Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG) has said to the Daily Guide newspaper. The association is fighting imports of bagged cement into the country, principally from China, because local production of cement exceeds demand. Local cement production capacity is 7.4Mt/yr, current consumption is 5Mt/yr and this leaves a surplus of 2.4Mt/yr.
"It's mind-boggling to see the ascendancy of imports of bagged cement from China despite persistent petitions that the manufacturers have installed capacities to meet local demand," said CMAG chairman George Dawson-Ahmoah in a recent statement. The association has been lobbying government bodies in Ghana since April 2015 on the issue if imported bagged cement from China. Local producers affected by the imports include GHACEM Limited, Diamond Cement Ghana, Savanna Diamond Cement and Western Diamond Cement.
Pakistan: The Ministry of Commerce has initiated World Trade Organisation (WTO) dispute settlement proceedings to fight South African anti-dumping duties on cement from Pakistan. The basis of Pakistan's argument is that the injury determination mechanism followed by South African authorities (ITAC) is flawed and does not reflect true analysis of the situation.
The Pakistan challenge has raised the issue that the South African authorities used an extended period of investigation of four years for causation analysis and didn't properly examine the evidence in the light of trends over that period. In addition, Pakistan considers that South Africa failed to examine the relationship between the alleged dumping and the worsening of the condition of the domestic industry especially by failing to consider the effects of the decartelization of the domestic cement producers. It also accuses South Africa of not properly examining the entire product under investigation and instead limiting its injury analysis to bagged cement and disregarded sales by the domestic industry of the bulk cement. Finally, the challenge has pointed out that the South African authorities didn't provide a fair opportunity to Pakistani cement exporters to defend their case, denying access to the trade statistics.
In May 2015 South Africa imposed various rates of duties on Pakistani cement exports ranging from 15 – 68% plus anti-dumping duty on the import of Pakistani cement. Since March 2015 Pakistan has been pursuing the matter on a legal and diplomatic basis.
APCMA calls for action on Iranian imports
10 November 2015Pakistan: The All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) has said that the growth in the domestic economy has supported overall growth in the cement industry. However it added that the industry has had to approach various decision makers to stop the influx of Iranian cement into Pakistan from Iran via Balochistan. The APCMA said that the industry needs a safeguard mechanism to be put in place to stop the adverse effects of cement smuggling into the country. It stated that the government should impose a 20% Regulatory Duty for import of cement in addition to the current customs duty.
The APCMA spokesperson added that, due to the high cost of doing business in Pakistan, the country's cement industry is losing competitiveness to other countries such as Iran, the UAE and India. The industry has appealed for reduction in energy costs, removal of taxes imposed on gas, a reduction of custom duty on coal to zero and an additional incentive of 5% on export of cement by sea.
Statistics indicate that the cement sector is now almost completely dependent on domestic sales, the share of which has increased to over 80% of total cement sales compared to just 50% in 2008 - 2009, as domestic sales continue to increase, while exports are showing constant decline. Cement dispatches to domestic markets during the month of October 2015 were 2.6Mt compared with 2.1Mt during October 2014, an increase of 24% year-on-year.
INC could be turned into cement importer immediately
15 October 2015Paraguay: Paraguay's Industry and Trade Minister Gustavo Leite has revealed that the possibility of turning Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) into a cement importer with immediate effect is being considered by the authorities, which are concerned about on-going cement supply issues and cement prices.
A public-private partnership to increase capacity to 1Mt/yr is being sought, but this will require a new cement plant, which takes between three and four years, so it will not solve the existing problems. A tender process to import cement could be organised before the end of October 2015 and the product could arrive in November 2015.
Pakistan cement exports hit by South Africa’s import duty
08 October 2015Pakistan: Cement exports from Pakistan fell by 36% year-on-year to 467,000t in September 2015, as the import duty by South Africa took a heavy toll on its exports.
"Around 45 – 50% of total cement exports were destined for South Africa before the duty was imposed," said Sheikh Adeel, Senior Manager of Sales and Marketing at Maple Leaf Cement. South Africa has imposed duty as high as 77% on Pakistan's cements. Adeel said that the drop in exports has adversely affected exporters in Punjab. The transportation cost from Punjab to Karachi Port also rose by US$20/t.
Another industry official said that the industry is not utilising its production capacity. "There is enough idle capacity. The government should step in to support the industry to export surplus volumes, otherwise cement exports will continue to decline in the coming months," said Shahzad Ahmed, a spokesman of the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA). "We expect the government to announce export incentives for the cement industry."
In September 2014, cement exports stood at 730,000t, according to APCMA data. Total cement dispatches were recorded at 2.95Mt in September 2015 compared to 3.15Mt in September 2014, showing a cut of 6.34%. The industry data showed that cement dispatches to domestic markets were 2.48Mt in September 2015 compared to 2.42Mt in September 2014, up by 2.6%.
The local industry has been demanding that the government curb cement imports from Iran, which they said is eating into local share. "The industry expects the government to take effective steps to stop the penetration of Iranian cement in Pakistani markets through massive under invoicing and/or mis-declaration," said Ahmed. He added that the mills in the south suffered more than those operating in northern part of the country.
In the south, domestic cement dispatches declined to 399,581t in September 2015 from 431,133t in September 2014. Domestic consumption in the north, however, rose to 2.08Mt in September 2015 from 1.99Mt in September 2014. Ahmed said that domestic dispatches in the north were nominally higher than the 2.02Mt of consumption in September 2015. "This shows that the pace of construction in the north has not been hit as badly as in the south," he said. The export decline was almost the same both in north and south. Cement exports from the north declined to 306,564t in September 2015 from 480,025t in September 2014. Exports from the south dipped to 160,698t in September 2015 from 249,906t in September 2014.
Cement shortage worsens in Mendoza state
29 September 2015Argentina: Cement suppliers in Mendoza province in Argentina have started bringing cement from Chile due to a continued and deepening cement supply crisis. Those that have already been granted permission from the Argentine tax agency to do so are already importing 50kg sacks from the country.
Cement shortages in Mendoza have worsened in recent months. Holcim recently told the local branch of Argentina's construction sector chamber that it was going to be able to resume its normal level of production shortly, after one of its mills was due to be repaired. However, this has reportedly not yet been completed.
Ghana Cement Manufacturing Association approves of import tax rise
03 September 2015Ghana: The Ghana Cement Manufacturing Association (GCMA) has approved of a government customs decision to increase the cost and freight value of imported bagged cement into the country. The valuation of Freight on Board (FOB) for the import of bagged cement has been increased to US$60/t from US$25/t, according to GCMA Chairman and Strategy and Corporate Affairs Director of Ghacem, George Dawson-Ahmoah.
"We are appealing to international cement manufacturing companies who know the international cement market trade to abide by fair trade practices to safeguard the industry, because it has consequences like workers losing their jobs, lower taxes to the government and folding-up of local cement companies — which would be disastrous for the nation," said Dawson-Ahmoah to local media.
Dawson-Ahmoah said that the GCMA was not expecting any value less than US$80/t to cover cost and freight of imported cement from China to Ghana. He added that the country's local cement industry has a 2Mt/yr surplus of cement production capacity following expansion projects. Since lobbying the government on this issue the GCMA has been monitoring movement of imported bagged cement and will continue to insist on fair trade practices.
Pakistan producers slam Iranian imports
27 August 2015Pakistan/Iran: The Pakistani cement industry has once again spoken out against imported cement from Iran and alleged massive under-invoicing across the border. Industry sources said that the Iranian cement, which was earlier being smuggled, is now entering Pakistan at very low rates due to under-invoicing. They say that importing cement into Pakistan, itself a cement exporter is 'incomprehensible.'
Taha Khan Javed, Elixir Securities Pakistan's head of research, said that the government needs to realise that this lax attitude towards under-invoicing and the 'rampant' import of Iranian cement is hurting both the government and the local cement industry. Pakistan already has surplus capacity and its exports are falling due to a slowdown in exports to Afghanistan and other regions. In the case of Afghanistan this is also, in part, due to Iranian imports.
Tanzania’s cement producers call for level playing field
07 August 2015Tanzania: Local cement makers have said that they are now facing collapse due to the continued influx of cheap imported products in an already saturated market.
The Chairman of the Tanzania Chapter of East African Cement Producers Association (EACPA), Reinhardt Swart, said that their situation was being made worse because they were competing with cheap imports at a time when their margins are squeezed by overcapacity in the market. "I am not asking for protection. I'm not asking the government to ban imports. I am asking for the government to create a level playing field," said Swart. He commented they were operating in a difficult environment with risks of job losses to adjust to the situation.
Swart welcomed the entry of new players in the cement market, saying they would stimulate development in the industry but cautioned that their preferential treatment such as tax breaks was not helpful to the country as it contribute to create unleveled playing field against the local industries. "If you allow new players for integrated cement plants and give tax breaks and you allow imports in an over capacity market, that is not fair. There is a risk that cement producers will suffer job losses," said Swart.
Swart said that Tanzania's cement producers support the government campaign to help local industries grow by using local coal, gypsum and other materials, but that the government was not reciprocating the gesture. "If you force us to use local coal, that increase in cost must be calculated in monetary terms and charged on imports as well. The same applies to royalties. If you force us to grow another industry at our cost, then you must either give us subsidies or charge the exact increased amount as additional duties on imports," said Swart.
Costa Rica to see further Chinese imports
17 July 2015Costa Rica: Amid the controversy generated by changes in the rules for marketing cement in Costa Rica, Sinocem has announced that the first Chinese import and sale of cement in the country generated 'good results.' It stated that it will import more. The company says that the first batch was sold in December 2014 at a price 20% lower than the competition.