Cement prices in the northern region shot up Rs20 per bag on Thursday in a second raise within a month. The latest hike means prices have risen by a total of Rs25-30 in a month.
In the western region, prices went up rs8-10 on Monday and are on a climb in southern and eastern regions.
Prices are now ruling at Rs255-260 per 50-kg bag for retail and Rs15-20 less for wholesale buyers in the northern region.
Prices were rolled back in Delhi by Rs5-7 per bag last week and the demand for PPC products used in infrastructure projects had slowed.
A senior official from the Mumbai Cement Stockists and Dealers Association said, “The prices in Mumbai are Rs250-255 per bag for wholesale and Rs265 for retail. There is a big shortage of wagons and we are not getting any incremental supply from the southern region. Prices are again expected to go up early next month. At present this region is commanding best prices with sales.”
An analyst with a domestic brokerage said, “Prices have increased in Mumbai and after a drop in south India, they are again up in that region at around Rs270 per bag in Tamil Nadu and Kerala for retail and Rs220-225 in Andhra Pradesh.”
There is no visibility whether the price hike will sustain in the North as there are no big-ticket projects in that region at present, the analyst said, adding, “We are expecting better numbers in terms of dispatches in January.”
Even in eastern region, where prices had plummeted to Rs250-255 per bag from Rs280 last month also saw an increase of Rs10-15, dealers said.
Jaspreet Singh Arora and Manish Valecha, analysts with Anand Rathi Securities, said in a report on Thursday, “All-India capacity utilisation for December 2010 was 78% as compared to 88% year on year and 67% month on month. At 59%, the South recorded the lowest and at 104%, the Central the highest utilisation. No new capacity was added during the month and installed capacity stood at 267 million tonnes.”
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