Pakistan’s cement sector posted a negative growth of 19.41 percent in July 2021 due to heavy rains in most parts of the country, coupled with the closure of the construction sector due to Eid-ul-Azha.
According to data released by the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA), total cement sales in the first month of the current fiscal year stood at 3.9 million tons compared to 4.8 million tons in July 2020.
The local cement sales dropped from 3.95 million tons in July 2020 to 3.45 million tons in July 2021, showing a decrease of 12.8 percent. Similarly, cement exports saw a massive reduction of 49 percent as the country exported only 452,776 tons abroad during July 2021 compared to 885,255 tons in the corresponding period last year.
A major decline in domestic cement consumption was in the northern region, where cement sales fell 15.81 percent to 2.9 million tons. Sales in the northern part had been 3.4 million tons in July 2020. However, exports from the region increased by 10.42 percent, rising from 122,823 tons in July 2020 to 135,618 tons in July 2021.
Mills based in the southern part of the country sold 554,442 tons of cement in the domestic market last month, which was 7.07 percent higher than the 517,850 tons supplied to retailers in the corresponding month of the previous year.
Cement exports from the south went down by 58.40 percent to 317,159 tons in July 2021 from 762,432 tons in July 2020.
An APCMA spokesman expressed concern over the slide in cement demand. He, however, hoped that the cement industry will regain its growth momentum in the coming months on the back of the government’s pre-construction sector policies.
“Projects under the government-sponsored Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) are being constructed in full spirit, and development funds have been released upfront,” he added.