Vietnam sold 10.23Mt of cement in the domestic market in the first quarter of this year, up eight per cent from a year ago, the Ministry of Construction (MoC) said. Shipments in March 2014 alone totalled 4.68Mt.

The three-month sales figure accounted for 21 per cent of the country’s full-year target, the MoC said on its website last week.

The country exported US$66m worth of cement and clinker between January and March, fulfilling 19.5 per cent of the whole-year target, including US$20m in March.

Last year, companies in Vietnam sold 61Mt of cement, rising by 13.9 per cent YoY and exceeding the whole-year target by 7.5 per cent, including 47Mt of domestic sales, up 3.4 per cent YoY, and 14Mt of cement and clinker exports, rising by 6Mt.

Vietnam’s cement sales are predicted to rise by 1.5-3 per cent YoY to between 62-63Mt this year, including 48.5-49Mt of domestic sales and 13.5-14Mt of exports.