Taiwan: cement and steel firms abort price hike plan

With a power-rate hike to be carried out in three stages, major Taiwan cement and steel firms have decided to shelve their plan to raise prices.

Taiwan Cement announced yesterday that its cement prices will remain unchanged in May, as it already has sufficient time to cope with the increased cost.

The government originally planned to hike power rates in one fell swoop, posing heavy pressure on the cement industry, as power fee accounts for 11% of the production cost of cement.

The adoption of the three-stage power-rate hike programme has greatly alleviated the pressure, prompting Taiwan Cement to abort its plan to raise cement prices in May. Other domestic cement prices are expected to follow suit.

An industry insider said that with the cement firms deciding to freeze their prices, pre-mixed concrete firms will not raise their prices further.