Cost, weak demand to hit India cement makers’ profits

Cost, weak demand to hit India cement makers’ profits
26 July 2011


Indian cement companies are expected to post lower net profits in the April-June quarter due to sluggish demand and higher cost of raw materials such as gypsum, coal and fly-ash.

Cement consumption has remained flat during the past quarter as a drop in urban housing demand has hurt construction activity and also due to a slowdown in the government’s infrastructure spending, brokerage company IIFL said in a research note.

However, the companies are likely to post higher sales as cement prices had increased by up to 5% during the first quarter of the financial year that began April 1, analysts said.
Published under Cement News