Pakistan produced 17.94Mt of cement in the first seven months of the current fiscal ending January 2012, according to data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCM).

This represents a four per cent increase on production achieved during the corresponding period of the last fiscal, APCM chairman Aizaz Mansoor Sheikh said.

In a statement he said that a 7.21 per cent decline in domestic demand was offset by a 3.59 per cent decline in exports. However, he noted that producers continue to operate below 70 per cent of installed capacity during January.