Six-month cement exports expand 50 pct year-on-year

Vietnam consumed a total of 8.71 million tonnes of cement in June this year, up 30 pct over the same period in 2017 - Illustrative image

According to the Construction Materials Department under the Ministry of Construction, Vietnam consumed a total of 8.71 million tonnes of cement in June this year, up 30 pct over the same period in 2017.

Of that figure, approximately 6,91 million tonnes of cement were sold domestically, up 29 pct over the same period in 2017 and 1,8 million tonnes of cement were shipped abroad, an increase of 35 pct over the same period in 2018.

In the January-June period, Vietnam was estimated to consume 51.42 million tonnes of cement, up 25 pct over the same period last year, equivalent to 61 pct of the yearly target.

Notably, cement exports continued to advance with 15.42 million tonnes shipped abroad in the six-month period, meeting 85.6 pct of the year's plan and up 30 pct over the same period in 2017.

Vietnam's inventory of cement was estimated at 3.1 million tonnes in the first six months of this year, equivalent to 14-15 days of cement production.

Experts in the area of construction materials said that high domestic consumption of cement was attributed to favorable weather for construction while expanded cement exports were mainly due to the halt of cement production in a number of cities in China.