Vietnam cement consumption falls 40%
Domestic cement consumption in Vietnam has dropped by up to 40 per cent in the first half of the year, reports Vietnam News.
Industry experts attributed declining demand to the fact that firms had stockpiled huge amounts of cement in anticipation of price increases.
The Viet Nam Cement Association also said the country was facing stiffer competition from imports.
In response to declining demand, local enterprises have reduced prices by about VND20,000 (U$1.08) per tonne against the previous month.
The current price stands at about VND900,000 to VND1.26 million ($48.6-68) per tonne against market estimates of VND950,000-1.15 million ($51-62).
The association said that cement productivity last month was 4.4Mt, a decrease of 0.03Mt against the previous month.
Consumption last month reached just 4.3Mt.
Domestic firms said they were having to compete with competitors from Thailand and China who are charging about 10 per cent less than local producers.
Published under Cement News
