Philippine cement sales up 16 per cent
Cement sales in the Philippines grew 16 per cent in the first two months of the year to 2.5Mt, the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (Cemap) said.
Ernesto Ordoñez, Cemap president, said the strong growth in the January-to-February period will compensate for the expected lower demand in the latter part of the year and help the industry achieve a full-year sales increment of six per cent..
Ordoñez said cement sales in late-2009 were boosted by consumer renovating properties that were damaged by typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng.
The industry grew 2.6 per cent in 2008 and 11 per cent in 2009. Last year, domestic cement sales reached 14.6Mt.
Ordoñez said election spending has been triggering the growth since last year, with both public infrastructure projects and private construction pushing demand.
“With the elections, a lot of projects are moving fast, but the latter part of the year may not be as strong as last year,” Ordoñez told reporters.
Published under Cement News
