Vietnam’s cement and clinker exports surged 63.2 per cent to 17.65Mt and 73 per cent to US$656.3m in the first seven months of 2018, according to the country’s General Department of Customs.

Around 26.9 per cent of exports were shipped to Bangladesh, Vietnam’s largest cement and clinker export market. In terms of volume, deliveries rose by 4.9 per cent to 4.75Mt while the export value increased by 15.8 per cent to US$152.8m YoY. The average price of exports was US$32.2/t.

Volumes to China rose 80-fold with a 90-fold advance in value, reaching 4.52Mt and US$158.35m, respectively, when compared with 7M17. They represented a six per cent share of total export volumes and 24.1 per cent of total turnover. Export prices to China increased 12.6 per cent YoY with the average price per tonne at US$35.

Vietnam’s third-largest cement and clinker export market, the Philippines, paid on average US$45.30/t for some 3.49Mt of Vietnamese product, which saw a 23.5 per cent YoY advance in volumes. Export turnover from these exports were up 28.1 per cent to US$159.73m.

In addition, there was particularly strong growth over the same period in Malaysia, where Vietnamese cement exporters increased their volumes by 87.9 per cent to 0.52Mt and turnover by 102.2 per cent to US$17.85m (average export price: US$34.20/t, up 7.6 per cent YoY). Cement producers also saw the off-take by Peru surge 74.7 per cent in volume and 72 per cent in value to close at 0.57Mt and US$26.49m.

Cement and clinker exports to the Australian market were particularly noticeable with a very strong increase of 96.2 per cent over the same period last year, with record prices of US$66.7/t. However, exports declined sharply by 90.2 per cent and turnover fell 80.8 per cent to 23,504t, equivalent to US$1.57m.

In addition, exports to Sri Lanka also decreased 68.3 per cent in volume and 64.3 per cent in turnover, reaching 128,059t, equivalent to US$4.23m. Exports to Mozambique fell by 47.9 per cent in volume and 40.8 percent in value to 156,120t, or US$5.14m.