Pakistan cement exports see monthly gains

Pakistan's cement exports during April 2015 showed sequential gains but declined over the first 10 months of the current fiscal on an annual comparative basis, with shipments to its main market of Afghanistan down by almost a quarter.

In April 2015, Pakistan exported 614,732t of cement on revenues of US$33.36m, up by 40.02 and 33.51 per cent, respectively compared to the previous month.  However, on an annual basis, export volumes were down by 14.9 per cent while the value in dollar terms fell by 14.39 per cent.

10-month trends
In the first 10 months of the current fiscal, exports totaled 6.624Mt on revenues of $382.40m, down 7.57 per cent YoY both in terms of volume and value.  In Pakistan rupee terms, the decline was 9.64 per cent in terms of the  PKR.38.71bn. The average price during the period fell to US$57.72/t.

According to all Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA), exports to Afghanistan continued to decline and were down 24 per cent to 2.32Mt over the 10-month period. On a more positive note, exports to India rose by 5.35 per cent to 583,710t, while shipments to Pakistan’s other international markets rose by two per cent.

Calls to help curb imports
A spokesperson for the APCMA has called on the government to take measure stop the alleged illegal cement imports from Iran. He is urging the government to protect the domestic cement industry by including cement in the negative list of imports (ie, banned items) so that he country’s surplus production capacity can be utilised more fully. “This will help to increase the economic growth in the country and will also curb malpractices at different levels,” the spokesperson noted.