In 2024, Henan cement market is facing unprecedented challenges. In the first half of the year, the cement output of Henan Province decreased by 16.6% compared with the same period last year, and the demand was seriously lower than expected at the beginning of the year. In terms of production, the average number of off-peak shutdown days of 62 clinker production lines in Henan Province from January to July reached 136 days, the production time was 77 days, and the average kiln line operation rate was only 36%.
Looking forward to the second half of the year, the situation is still difficult to be optimistic. It is expected that the demand for cement in Henan will continue to decline from August to December. It is expected that the kiln will be shut down for 92 days from August to December. Combined with the situation of kiln shutdown from January to July, it is expected that the kiln will be shut down for 228 days on average throughout the year, and the average operation rate of the kiln line will be 37.5%, which is 4% lower than that of last year.
Once, Henan was a model for structural reform of cement supply side in various provinces in China. Thanks to the implementation of off-peak production and the establishment of market competition and cooperation in the platform period, Henan cement industry as a whole has maintained a relatively good development trend from 2017 to 2021.
However, in 2023, Henan cement market ushered in a low ebb. Cement prices in some areas once fell below 200 yuan/ton. Especially from late May to early August 2023, Henan cement prices almost showed a downward trend all the way. After entering the traditional peak season, the overall cement price has been raised several times, but the difficulty of implementation has increased significantly compared with previous years.
In 2024, the cement market in Henan is still facing many challenges. Cement enterprises need to maintain strategic strength, firm confidence in development, and spare no effort to maintain the industry ecology.
