Corporate
Clinker import tax hike threatens small, medium-sized producers in Assam, India
Medium and small-sized cement producers in Assam have criticized a proposal by the state government to raise the import tax of clinker by four per cent. The new proposal will see the entry tax on clinker raised from two to six per cent, applicable only to small and medium units, acco...
Panel to review Egypt gas price hikes
A panel of judges is set to review an appeal made by five cement producers over gas price hikes by the Egyptian government, a Cairo administrative court said. According to reports by Bloomberg, a panel is to look ...
Cemex prices US$600m in notes, Mexico
Cemex on Thursday priced six-year secured notes for US$600m to pay down debt. The notes, due 2019, to be issued at par, will pay annual interest of 5.875 per cent and will be callable after three years. It expects ...
HSBC Global increases stake in India Cements
HSBC Global Investment Funds has purchased 384,345 shares of India Cements Ltd for an undisclosed sumy, the cement producer said in a notice to the stock exchanges. Following the acquisition, HSBC Global Investment's...
Cementos Molins to reduce workforce
Spain-based cement producer Cementos Molins is to cut 56 jobs at its St Vicenc dels Horts works due to the ongoing crisis in the domestic construction market. The cutbacks will reduce the total number of employees a...
HeidelbergCement reduces debt, profit edges ahead
German cement major HeidelbergCement reported increases in revenue and operating income in 2012 as well as a significant reduction in net debt. Revenue for the 12 months to December 2012 improved by nine per cent ...
Moody’s upgrades Holcim outlook
Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded Holcim’s outlook to stable, ending 15 months on a negative watch. Moody’s said it changed the outlook citing cash generation as cement sales in the US and emerging markets imp...
PT Indocement net profit rises 32.2%, Indonesia
PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa, part of the HeidelbergCement group, has reported a 32.2 per cent rise in net profit for 2012. The country’s second-largest cement producer saw net profit rise to IDR4.76trn (US$491m)...
PPC Zimbabwe secures funding for new project
PPC Zimbabwe has secured US$200m to build a second plant, according to local press reports. Chief executive, Zak Limbada, said: “We have secured US$200m for the projects but I cannot disclose the source at the mom...
China's cement sector faces impact of new property control policies
The Chinese cement sector recovery is likely to face further headwinds in the near-term given stricter property control policies announced on 1 March. The government is to initiate an array of measures includin...
Lucky Cement appoints new CFO
Lucky Cement has appointed Muhammad Faisal to be its chief financial officer. ??He replaces Muhammad Abid Ganatra.
Thatta Cement majority shareholder shares stake to consortium
The majority shareholder of Thatta Cement, Pakistan, has sold its stake to a consortium of four private companies. In an announcement sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange last week, Arib Habib Corp (AHC), along with...
Habesha Cement appoints new chairman, Ethiopia
Habesha Cement of Ethiopia has appointed a new chairman as well as new board members to reflect changes in the company's shareholding. Tamiru Wondimagegn has been appointed as Habesha Cement’s new board chairman r...
Vicat grows in Asia
France-based cement major Vicat reported a 1.2 per cent rise in turnover in 2012 to €2292.2m, but the EBITDA declined by 10.9 per cent to €437.4m and the trading profit fell by 20.8 per cent to €245.2m. The company ...
Cementir boosts white cement volumes in China and Malaysia
Cementir Holding increased turnover in 2012 by 6.4 per cent to €976.2m and the EBITDA was ahead by 11.2 per cent to €138.1m as the margin improved from 13.3 per cent to 14.1 per cent. Depreciation and impairment p...
Credit Suisse upgrades HeidelbergCement
Credit Suisse has upgraded HeidelbergCement from underperform to neutral and increased its target price to EUR53.00 from EUR37.00, Dow Jones reports. The bank says a more upbeat outlook for global cement prices thi...