Cement sales witness growth amid rising domestic demand

Cement sales in February 2025 have displayed a year-on-year (YoY) improvement of approximately seven percent. Data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers (APCM) revealed that domestic cement dispatches in February 2025 stood at a respectable 3.065 million tons – a stark improvement from the 2.869 million tons that were dispatched in the corresponding period last year.

While cement dispatches have posted a YoY improvement, reports reveal that local cement dispatch figures are lower than initial estimates had pegged them to be. This is because, in January, cement sales recorded an impressive growth rate of 11.64 percent.

A large volume of domestically produced cement is being exported, with analysts reporting a whopping 34.3 percent YoY growth in cement exports in February 2025. According to APCM’s data, cement exports were able to ship off 531,736 tons of the commodity to international destinations, which brought the total dispatch figures for February up to 3.596 million tons.

According to credible reports, cement mills with operations based in the North have been able to sell 2.556 million tons, while mills based in the South lag far behind, churning out approximately one million tons of the commodity. This reveals a north-south disparity of over 145 percent in favour of cement mills based in the north of the country.

In the event of a decline in domestic cement demand, as has been the case before January 2025, cement mills based closer to sea ports might be able to secure export orders more easily, owing to the relatively lower level of costs associated with shipping their cement out to international buyers.

This might be a contributing factor in the growth of cement dispatches from South-based cement mills. As per data from reports, cement supply from mills in the south has displayed a 25 percent YoY growth rate.

Moreover, South-based YoY exports in February skyrocketed by over 60 percent while their counterparts in the north lost out as they reportedly faced a 47.82 percent decline in export orders.

A rise in local cement dispatches indicates growing domestic construction activities. This spells great news for the 42 ancillary industries that provide raw materials to construction businesses.

With construction activities slated to rise, a slight drop in unemployment could be witnessed in the coming periods. However, the official unemployment rate, which sits at an uneasy 7.5 percent, may not shift noticeably as daily wage labourers are the ones who are expected to secure work – as it is unlikely that they will report a change in their employment status.