News

After two months of a decline, sales of cement in Morocco rose 4.39% in July, 2015. Sales since the start of the year are down 0.77%. In the first seven months, the Doukkala-Adba region posted the strongest performance, with growth of 30% due mainly to the construction of the Safi-El Jadida motorway and the port of Safi.

Dangote Cement and Chinese company Sinoma International Engineering have signed deals to construct cement plants across Africa. The plants will add 25million tonnes to the cement company’s existing capacity of nearly 50 million tonnes.

Tokyo Cement Company (Sri Lanka) has called on the Sri Lankan government to fix an alleged policy mismatch resulting in what managing director SR Gnanam described as market distortions: cement imports are duty-free, but domestically manufactured cement is subject to price controls. There are also reported to be concerns of cheap, low-quality cement imports that lead to reduced building safety.

DEUTZ, the Cologne, Germany-based engine manufacturer, has produced the nine millionth engine of its 150-year-plus history. The company says that thanks to continuous improvements in efficiency and cutting-edge exhaust after-treatment systems, DEUTZ engines are in demand worldwide. DEUTZ was founded in Cologne in 1864, and in 1867 the company’s founders Nicolaus August Otto and Eugen Langen developed the atmospheric gas-powered engine, known as Engine No. 1.
This was followed in 1876 by the world’s first f

World demand for cement is projected to rise 4.5% per year to 5.2 billion tonnes in 2019, according to a new study by the US-based Freedonia Group.

Cement sale gains will continue to be driven by healthy increases in construction activity in developing countries throughout the Asia/Pacific and Africa/Mideast regions. The massive Chinese market will continue to be the largest driver of growth, accounting for over half of the increase in global cement demand through 2019. North America will also post stro

CRH CEO Albert Manifold says the construction materials giant is on track to deliver “another year of growth” after the firm’s H1 2015 reported sales increased 13% to €9.4 billion; down 1% in Europe and up 26% in the Americas compared to the same period of 2014.

Sales from continuing operations increased 17%; up 3% in Europe and up 32% in the Americas. EBITDA from continuing operations is up 29%; up 4% in Europe and up 57% in the Americas. Meanwhile, margins are up in all six operating divisions.

CRH

Tanzania Portland Cement, which trades as Twiga on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, posted a H1 2015 net profit of TZS22.17 billion (US$10.4 million)- down from TZS27.14 billion ($12.5 million) - recorded during the corresponding period last year.

Revenue of the HeidelbergCement subsidiary, the largest cement producing firm in Tanzania, in the first half went up by 18% to TZS135.74 billion ($62.54 million) as sales increased but cost of sales chewed up revenue by almost two-third.

Twiga chairman Jean

The global white cement market is expected to exhibit moderate growth in the short and medium terms driven by the revival of the global construction industry and strong demand from emerging markets, according to a new report.

The global demand of white cement is currently much lower than that of grey cement and currently accounts for less than 1% of the current global cement consumption.

Its price and profit margins, however, are higher than grey cement. China currently represents both the world’s b

Sika Srbija , the Swiss-owned materials company for the construction sector in Serbia, has reported that it registered a 25% sales increase in H1 of 2015 in comparison with the same period of 2014.

By the end of 2015, the company is predicting that the export of its products will reach 3,000tonnes.

So far, the company has invested CHF 5 million (€4.64 million) in its Simanovac plant.

It has been reported that the Belgian company Karmeus is planning to invest a total of €7 million (US$7.97 million) in the Serbian plaster factory Jelen Do, over the next five-year period.

The announcement is said to have been made by Karmeus's vice president for sales and marketing for Europe, Julian Denvers.

He said that the Serbian company, acquired in 2013 for €9.6 million, has had €1.5 million invested in its modernisation.

The latest Builders Merchants Panel from GfK shows that general builders merchants in the UK saw sales increase by 12.8% in the second quarter of 2015 in comparison to the first quarter of 2015.

Total sales rose from £1.2 billion (€1.65 billion US$1.88 billion) to £1.36 billion (€1.86 billion), the highest level recorded since tracking began in July 2014.

Sales of landscaping products rose by 62.4% quarter-on-quarter, while sales of heavy building materials rose by 13.5%.

The Builders Merchants Fed

Between 26 August 2015 and 23 October 2015, Taiwan-based Taiwan Goldsun Building Materials (Goldsun Building) will be repurchasing 100 million of its shares on the open market.

The price will be TWD 6 (€0.16/US$0.18) to TWD 10 apiece, announced the ready-mixed concrete manufacturer and distributor.

The share buy-back proposal, which will involve 6.58% of Goldsun Building's outstanding shares, was approved by the company's board on 25 August 2015.

Goldsun Building plans to stabilise its share price

LafargeHolcim Russia has released Master cement in bags with a new design, developed with regard to buyer preferences.

The package mostly retained its previous style, but features a number of new details making the information on the product and its use easier to perceive visually.