On 9 September, the construction of 10 major projects started in southwest China's Guizhou province, representing a total investment of CNY68.53bn (US$9.62bn). As a result, cement prices in some areas of Guizhou have seen an average increase of CNY60/t since August.

Elsewhere, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Henan and Shandong provinces, as well as the autonomous region of Guangxi, have recorded a price increase of around CNY20-40/t.

"The country's cement prices have maintained at more than CNY400/t since April 2018, and the cement industry is in a boom cycle," said Shao Linlin, analyst at Essence Securities.

However, Chen Bolin, deputy director of the Information Center, China Cement Association, has said that cement prices have been at a high level on a whole and he did not expect to see a significant increase again.