Econ
Vietnam is world’s third largest cement producer
In the first ten months of 2018, Vietnam’s cement exports reached an all-time high of USD1.1 billion.
As of December 2018, China is the world’s largest cement producer with a capacity of 1,484 million tons per year. It is followed by India and Vietnam, with 437 and 148 million tons per year, respectively, according to Global Cement.
Although China’s cement production has been cut off, its total capacity is still as large as 200 million tons per year higher than the sum of the other nine countries’ capacities.
The main characteristic of Vietnamese cement industry is that it is dominated by domestic players, stated Viet Dragon Securities Company (VDSC) in its latest report.
Vietnam has 74 production plants in total, and almost all of them are controlled or owned by the government. Even though the plants have not worked at full capacity, potentials to produce cement in Vietnam is considered high. Although the designed capacity of Vietnam is 148 million tons per year, the actual production is much lower than that figure since the demand is much lower than supply, informed the report.
Total output (actual production) has gradually increased from 78 million tons in 2017 to 83 million tons in 2018, and total production in 2019 is estimated to reach nearly 90 million tons.
With many domestic players, competition in this industry is tough while the domestic market is saturated. Vietnam’s cement industry has struggled to find a solution for this excess capacity. According to the Vietnam Cement Association (VNCA), the country faced a surplus of 26 million tons of cement overall in 2017. Exports are a way to help remove this excess capacity, especially since China decided to cut cement production in 2018-2020. In the first ten months of 2018, China’s cement exports reached an all-time high of USD1.1 billion.
Until November 2018, China is Vietnam’s biggest export destination, with more than 7.6 million tons in volume and more than US$276 million in value. Bangladesh ranked second with nearly 6 million tons. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines is the most important importer with 5.5 million tons of cement in the January – October period.
In March 2017, Chinese policy makers considered cutting production of coal, steel, and cement by 10% to curb air pollution. Moreover, it also enabled a plan to prohibit the expansion of heavy industry capacity, including cement. Thus, Vietnamese producers expect to take advantage of the Chinese market.
Average selling price varies by country. Until November 2018, Southeast Asian countries have high import prices. Cambodia is importing cement from Vietnam at US$51.6 per ton while the Philippines pays US$46.4 per every imported ton. China, with its negotiating power, only spends US$36.3 to import one ton of cement from Vietnam.
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The main characteristic of Vietnamese cement industry is that it is dominated by domestic players, stated Viet Dragon Securities Company (VDSC) in its latest report.
Vietnam has 74 production plants in total, and almost all of them are controlled or owned by the government. Even though the plants have not worked at full capacity, potentials to produce cement in Vietnam is considered high. Although the designed capacity of Vietnam is 148 million tons per year, the actual production is much lower than that figure since the demand is much lower than supply, informed the report.
Total output (actual production) has gradually increased from 78 million tons in 2017 to 83 million tons in 2018, and total production in 2019 is estimated to reach nearly 90 million tons.
Until November 2018, China is Vietnam’s biggest export destination, with more than 7.6 million tons in volume and more than US$276 million in value. Bangladesh ranked second with nearly 6 million tons. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines is the most important importer with 5.5 million tons of cement in the January – October period.
In March 2017, Chinese policy makers considered cutting production of coal, steel, and cement by 10% to curb air pollution. Moreover, it also enabled a plan to prohibit the expansion of heavy industry capacity, including cement. Thus, Vietnamese producers expect to take advantage of the Chinese market.
Average selling price varies by country. Until November 2018, Southeast Asian countries have high import prices. Cambodia is importing cement from Vietnam at US$51.6 per ton while the Philippines pays US$46.4 per every imported ton. China, with its negotiating power, only spends US$36.3 to import one ton of cement from Vietnam.
