Output of China's building materials sector fell in the first quarter of 2015 as the property market remained weak, the country's top economic planner indicated on Wednesday.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said national cement output was down 3.4 per cent YoY to 428Mt, while flat glass production fell six per cent. Prices of cement and flat glass both dropped in March. Compared with a month earlier, the factory price of cement shed 1.3 per cent, and that of flat glass moved down 0.4 per cent.
The property sector, a major consumer of cement and flat glass, shows no significant improvement despite policy support. Of 70 large and medium-sized cities surveyed, 50 saw new home prices dip on a monthly basis in March.
Meanwhile, The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) held a meeting with cement makers on Thursday, discussing the new tiered pricing mechanism, according to a statement posted on Friday on the MIIT's website.
The aim of the new pricing mechanism is to push forward restructuring of the cement industry, force cement companies to improve technology and eliminate outdated production capacity.
At the meeting, the MIIT and the NDRC introduced details of the new pricing mechanism, which were approved by most participants.
