Pakistan has reported flat growth in export sales in terms of volume for the first eight months of fiscal 2012-13, but a strong advance has been reported in terms of value thanks to improvements in the price per tonne of cement.

During the July 2012 – Feb 2013 period, Pakistan exported 5.59Mt of cement with a value of US$376.85m compared to 5.589Mt at US$303.71m in the same period of last year. This represents a growth in volumes of 0.03 per cent but a rise in dollar value of 24.08 per cent, according to data released by Pakistan’s Federal Bureau of Statistics.

In terms of value by Pakistan rupee, exports rose by 35.22 per cent to PKR36.12bn during the eight month period of FY12-13.

The price per tonne of cement has improved to US$67.40 from US$54.33/t during 8MFY2011-12.

Month-on-month comparison

In February alone, Pakistan exported 505,875t of cement and earned US$36.14m compared to 488,884t at US$36.25m in the previous month. This shows an increase of 3.47 per cent in terms of quantity but a decline of 0.31 per cent in value terms.

Year-on-year gains

Compared to February 2012 of 486,165t of cement at US$30.37m, cement exports recorded a growth of 4.05 per cent and 18.98 per cent in terms of quantity and dollar value, respectively.

Afghanistan was the biggest market for Pakistan cement exports but recorded a decline of 2.4 per cent during 8MFY13 to 2.953Mt. Exports to India also fell by 39.29 per cent to 271,866t during the period. Pakistan brokerage houses and cement exports are pinning their hopes on a revival of economic activity in the next couple of months following the elections which should spur cement demand. However, non-tariff barriers have still not been removed in India, according to industry sources. Following the withdrawal of western forces from Afghanistan, prospects for growth in exports have dimmed.

Industry outlook

In terms of the overall outlook for the cement sector, industry experts have estimated that due to the improving domestic demand outlook, strong cement prices, soft coal prices and better placed to expand/diversify with deleveraging of balance sheets, the cement sector would perform well during the rest of the year.

Published under Cement News