Pakistan: exports to Afghanistan decline

APCMA data revealed that domestic dispatches in January 2017 were 2.722Mt, while exports amounted to 0.376Mt, reflecting YoY growth of 0.78 and -2.71 per cent, respectively. Total cement dispatches in January 2017 amounted to 3.087Mt.

According to data released by the APCMA, during the first seven months of current fiscal year, the cement industry posted a growth of 9.52 per cent in local dispatches compared with the same period of last fiscal year. Export dispatches in the same period fell by 3.44 per cent YoY. The overall situation during first seven months of current fiscal year showed a 7.45 per cent growth YoY. Capacity utilisation for the period was 85 per cent.

Pakistan’s cement exports to Afghanistan declined by 10.88 per cent over the seven-month period from July 2016-January 2017, manufacturers say. On a YoY basis, exports slumped from 0.174Mt in January 2016 to 0.166Mt in January 2017, representing a drop of 4.5 per cent.

The APCMA linked the fall in exports to an increase in fuel prices, other input costs and barriers like the anti-dumping duty imposed by importers.

Meanwhile, dispatches to India rose from 0.049Mt to 0.861Mt in the same period, a 77 per cent growth. A spokesman for the APCMA said exports of cement to India, however, grew by 79.34 per cent during the period. India has imposed a tariff of around 19 per cent on cement imports.

An APCMA spokesman said that cement industry has opted for a 26.25Mta expansion to meet the massive demand in the country due to several government and CPEC projects.