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Cement sector exports continue the uptrend in July

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According to data released by the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturer Association, the cement sector continued its growth pattern at the start of this fiscal after the conclusion of its most successful year that ended on June 30, 2018.

Despite the disruption caused by the hectic election activities, the sector posted a 5.10 percent growth in July over the year.

The year 2018-19 started on a positive note for both domestic and export sectors. In July 2018 the total cement dispatches were recorded at 3.554 million tons, 5.10 percent higher than the 3.382 million tons dispatched in July 2017.

Generally the election activities slow down the economic and construction activities and workers go back to the places where they are registered as voters. However, the annual growth recorded in July adds to a view that the cement sector is back with stronger fundamentals.

Overall, cement dispatches witnessed an 18% growth between June and July 2018, supported by the resumption of normal working hours after Ramadan and Eid holidays, despite the monsoon season.

On the trading front, in the month of July 2018 the exports witnessed an increase of about 9.25 percent from the 0.476 million tons exported in July 2017 to 0.520 million tons last month whereas the domestic dispatches increased by 4.42 percent from 2.906 million tons in July last year to 3.035 million tons in July 2018.

While consistent with the previous months, the growth in exports is higher due to smaller base of exports to begin with. The domestic growth on the other hand, though lower in percentage compared to exports, is a larger contributor to the industry in terms of volume due to a larger domestic sales base.

The most pleasing aspect of the recent surge in the cement sector is the resurgence of exports that had been going down during the years 2008-2017 but has started recovering steadily for the last few months with the trend continuing in July 2018.

Growth in export by sea increased by 133.71 percent from 0.144 million tons in July 2017 to 0.336 million tons last month to other countries which offset the decrease of exports to Afghanistan and India which decreased by around 44.88 percent and 44.43 percent respectively in the same duration, increasing overall exports by 9.25 percent in July 2018 as compared to same month last year.

The spokesman of APCMA expressed hope that after the induction of new government the economic activities would grow and the cement demand would increase. “We expect the new economic managers to make the necessary changes in policy that the industry has been demanding to further boost demand, and also take measures to boost export opportunities in neighboring countries,” he added.

Posted on: 2018-08-06T14:31:00+05:00

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