Sephaku Cement sees profits fall on construction activity decline

Sephaku Cement (Dangote group) says it expects the next 12-18 months to be tough on the building sector. Declining numbers of new construction sites are impacting on business.

The market is expected to remain subdued, Sephaku Cement said, as reflected by the 12.7 per cent decline in building plans passed for 2019, according to Stats SA data.

Sephaku Cement reported profit after tax slumped to ZAR1.3m (US$83,745) in its year to end-December, from ZAR128.7m previously.

It said it had selectively implemented price increases of 5-9 per cent in January and February 2020 for bulk and bagged cement respectively, though most competitors were seeking to hold or gain market share, either delaying price increases or not increasing prices at all.