Vietnam’s export-led cement market sees strong growth: report

By Dat Nguyen May 17, 2018 | 02:21 am PT

A cement plant in Vietnam's southern province of Binh Phuoc. Photo courtesy of Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation

High demand from Bangladesh and the Philippines has led to Vietnamese cement export growth of 27.7 percent.

Vietnam’s cement market last year recorded strong growth thanks to robust export activities, according to a recent report.

Cement and clinker sales volume reached 80.3 million tons in 2017, marking three years of increasing growth, according to the Vietnam Cement Report 2018 published by StoxPlus, a financial and business information corporation in Vietnam.

Strong demand abroad, especially from Bangladesh and the Philippines, drove the industry with export volume of 19.7 million tons last year, a 27.7 percent increase, the report said.

China is also showing signs of becoming a big cement buyer as its government has shut down tens of thousands of cement factories in November last year as part of a pollution crackdown, according to the study.

Clinker was the main driver for cement exports in 2017 with a robust growth of 53.8 percent, while cement export volume fell sharply by 21.4 percent in comparison with 2016, the report said.

Foreign countries prefer clinker import over cement due to cost differences, researchers said, adding that the trend will continue to shape Vietnam’s cement exports in the future.

StoxPlus experts believe that Vietnam’s cement exports will continue to grow because of a government decree in December last year which slashed cement export tariff to zero. This has allowed Vietnam to become more competitive in the race against ASEAN countries.

It is estimated that Vietnamese export companies now can enjoy higher profit by $3-4.5/ton under the new tariff.

Researchers forecast that the demand for cement will grow at 5 percent per year until 2030. Vietnam is expected to face a cement surplus until reaching equilibrium in 2027 at 130.8 million tons of cement, without factoring unconfirmed projects in Vietnam.

Vietnam currently has 107 cement facilities owned by 93 companies with total capacity of 120.9 million tons per year (MTPY). Last year, “mega” projects from cement companies of the country contributed 18.5 MTPY to the market.