The sales of locally produced cement in domestic and international markets fell by 14 percent to 2.23 million last July on year-to-year basis an industry report said.
In the local market, the sales of cement dropped by 6.5 percent to 1.73 million tons, while exports also saw a decline of 32.9 percent to 503,000 tons, according to the figures released by All Pakistan Cement Manufacturer Association (APCMA) on Monday.
Despite the slump in the cement industry, analysts brushed aside any likelihood of price revision by manufacturers.
“The domestic sales [of cement] fell largely because of a lull in construction activities in the month of Ramadan and fewer working days due to Eid holidays,” said Furqan Ayub of JS Research.
Ayub cites the shrink in international demand to the political unrest in Afghanistan, withdrawal of NATO forces and stiffer competition. He also predicted that sales of local cement will continue to remain low in the current month.
“We expect cement sales to remain relatively subdued in August 2014 as well, because there is shortage of labor in the post-Eid holiday’s scenario and the political temperatures in the country continues to remain high,” he said.
He further adds: “however, we are reasonably confident that industry players will not compromise on pricing despite weak sales trend and rising cost pressure environment.”
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