Vietnam cement sales advance 11% in March

Domestic sales in Vietnam increased 19 per cent YoY and 147 per cent MoM to 6.797Mt in March 2019, according to the latest data from the Vietnam National Cement Association (VNCA). VICEM sales were up 120 per cent YoY to 2.338Mt and sales by its affiliated companies saw a 17 per cent rise to 1.949Mt. Other companies added a further volume of 2.51Mt (+20 per cent YoY) to total domestic sales.

Cement and clinker exports from Vietnam slipped two per cent to 3.425Mt in March 2019 when compared with March 2018 but surged 46 per cent MoM. The total includes 1.192Mt of cement, of which exports more than doubled when compared with the year-ago period, and 2.234Mt of clinker, down 24 per cent YoY.

As a result, domestic cement producers reported an 11 per cent YoY increase in sales to 10.222Mt in March 2019. Compared with February 2019, total sales doubled.

First-quarter 2019 sales
Total cement sales in Vietnam advanced three per cent YoY to 22.562Mt. Of this total 14.127Mt were sold in the domestic market, representing a YoY rise of six per cent, while cement exports slipped two per cent to 8.435Mt.

VICEM’s domestic sales performed above average, reporting a nine per cent YoY increase to 4.84Mt, but its affiliated companies saw sales edge up by one per cent only to 3.798Mt. Vietnam’s other cement producers sold 5.49Mt, a seven per cent improvement on 1Q18 sales.

In terms of exports, cement exports surged 84 per cent in the 1Q19 to 3.143Mt while clinker exports decreased 23 per cent YoY to 5.292Mt.