India January cement dispatches up 9.4%

Indian cement dispatches during January 2012 increased by 9.4 per cent – the third straight month of high growth due to a low base effect (January 2011: +1.1 per cent).

Dispatches in January 2012 reached 220.4Mt compared to 18.6Mt in the year-ago period. Cement production rose 10.6 per cent to 20.6Mt, according to figures from the Cement Manufacturers Association of India and Holcim.

For the April-December 2011 period, demand rose 17 per cent in th western market, 10 per cent in the north, eight per cent in the central region and three per cent in the east, The Times of India reported.

Consumption declined in Andhra Pradesh (14 per cent), Jharkhand (eight per cent) Himachal Pradesh (six per cent) and Bihar (four per cent). Gujarat recorded a 20 per cent rise in demand, while Punjab and Orissa recorded gains of 15 per cent each and Maharashtra saw a 14 per cent advance.