Domestic cement dispatches see 7% growth in February

March 04, 2025 (MLN): Domestic cement dispatches saw a marginal increase of 6.82% in February 2025, reaching 3.065 million tons compared to 2.87m tons in February 2024, according to data released by the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA)

However, the growth was not as strong as anticipated.

In contrast, January 2025 had shown an 11.64% month-on-month increase after months of negative momentum, indicating a brief recovery in the sector.

However, export dispatches saw a notable rise of 34.30%, increasing from 395,935 tons in February 2024 to 531,736 tons in February 2025.

The total cement dispatches for February 2025 reached 3.59m tons, marking a 10.15% increase from 3.26m tons in the same month last fiscal year.

In regional terms, North-based cement mills dispatched 2.55m tons in February 2025, reflecting a 5.06% increase from 2.43m tons in February 2024.

South-based mills dispatched 1.04m tons, recording a 25.04% increase from 0.83m tons in February 2024.

Domestic dispatches from North-based mills rose by 7.22% to 2.51m tons in February 2025, compared to 2.34m tons in February 2024.

Meanwhile, South-based mills dispatched 557,895 tons in the local market, registering a 5.06% increase from 531,044 tons in February 2024.

Exports from North-based mills suffered a significant decline of 47.82%, decreasing from 95,393 tons in February 2024 to 49,780 tons in February 2025.

Conversely, exports from South-based mills surged by 60.36%, rising from 300,542 tons in February 2024 to 481,956 tons in February 2025.

During the first eight months of the current fiscal year, total cement dispatches (domestic and exports) amounted to 30.42m tons, a slight decline of 0.45% from 30.56m tons in the corresponding period last year.

Domestic dispatches during this period fell by 6.00% to 24.5m tons from 26.06m tons in the same period last year.

Export dispatches, however, surged by 31.78% to 5.92m tons from 4.49m tons in the previous fiscal year.

North-based mills dispatched 20.36m tons of cement domestically in the first eight months of the current fiscal year, a 5.28% decline from 21.49m tons in the same period last year.

Exports from North increased by 20.42% to 1.1m tons compared to 0.91m tons exported during the same period last year.

Total dispatches from North-based mills declined by 4.23% to 21.46m tons from 22.41m tons in the corresponding period last year.

South-based mills dispatched 4.14m tons domestically from July to February 2025, a 9.42% decrease from 4.57m tons in the same period last year.

However, exports from the South increased by 34.68% to 4.82m tons compared to 3.58m tons in the corresponding period last year.

Total dispatches from South-based mills increased by 9.96% to 8.96m tons in the first eight months of the current fiscal year, compared to 8.15m tons in the same period last year.

A spokesperson for the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association expressed hope that the upcoming budget would introduce industry-friendly measures to enhance the sector’s capacity utilization.

He highlighted the cement industry’s role in supporting allied industries and contributing to the overall economic development of the country.

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